Why are mass balloon releases still being done and allowed??

[Mcr Warrior]

Charities (real & pretend) are worse polluters, with their huge plastic sacks shoved through your letterbox with monotonous regularity.

They make great bin liners!

 

[bussnapperwm]

Charities (real & pretend) are worse polluters, with their huge plastic sacks shoved through your letterbox with monotonous regularity.

They do make good bin liners though

 

[Meerkat]

I don't understand how balloon releases arent already against the current laws, bylaws, or somesuch. Surely it is littering, just the same as if you threw the balloon into a bush without even inflating it?

 

[Mcr Warrior]

I don't understand how balloon releases arent already against the current laws, bylaws, or somesuch. Surely it is littering, just the same as if you threw the balloon into a bush without even inflating it?

Apparently balloon (and lantern) releases are not currently classified as litter because the balloons are "let go" rather than dropped. Although obviously, in due course, they eventually come down as litter somewhere!

 

[DelW]

I've never noticed discarded balloons, but was quite shocked at the frequency that people just lob fast food packaging, drinks cans etc from a fast moving car or lorry. Its becoming an almost daily thing I've noticed.

Very much so. One of my regular walks is along a country lane which provides a short cut between a trunk road and a nearby town. Most weeks I can collect one or two carrier bags full of cans, bottles, coffee cups and food wrappers, mostly thrown from vehicles I suspect. A really odd one today was a full bottle of mineral water which hadn't even been opened - the cap seal was still intact. Who does this and why?

The energy usage of lights is somewhat reduced these days. All of our lights have transformers reducing the voltage and current. Not like the lights we had in the 80s that were just plugged straight into a 3 pin socket!

I suspect the direct plug in ones were connected in series, giving the necessary voltage drop without needing a transformer. But the switch to LEDs must have greatly reduced power consumption from Christmas lights.

 

[Ediswan]

I suspect the direct plug in ones were connected in series, giving the necessary voltage drop without needing a transformer.

There is no suspicion about it, they were in series. Nominal 2.4V for a 100 light string, 4.8V for 50 lights.

 

[eMeS]

What gas is used in balloons?
If it's helium that's surely a waste of a commodity with finite & limited supplies, which surely should be reserved for serious research.

 

[westv]

What gas is used in balloons?
If it's helium that's surely a waste of a commodity with finite & limited supplies, which surely should be reserved for serious research.

It will be helium otherwise they wouldn't float.

 

[Ashley Hill]

Is there a green solution to this problem ie degradable balloons?

 

[johnnychips]

In the 60s there were balloon races, where you would attach a tab to a balloon with a return address. After a certain time the balloon that had gone the furthest was declared the winner. I remember winning the Longdendale Labour Party Summer Fair balloon race in 1969 when I was 9 as my balloon was retrieved by a Madamoiselle Mireille Missimilly somewhere in the centre of France. I have no idea why balloon finders would return them, and pay for the postage - perhaps they thought they would win a prize.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Wonder just how far most balloons in balloon races travel before they then burst and fall to the ground (as litter) after having been released? Maybe five miles downwind?

 

[XAM2175]

It will be helium otherwise they wouldn't float.

Hydrogen would also work, but it's avoided for obvious reasons.

 

[Westcountryman]

It will be helium otherwise they wouldn't float.

NMR spectroscopes need liquid helium cooling. There was a severe helium shortage a few years ago, and looking on the web it appears that shortages are quite frequent. If there isn't sufficient helium then scientific research is hampered, and as NMR spectroscopy is used to diagnose conditions such as cancer (I don't know whether medicinal spectroscoped require helium) shortages may prevent diagnoses. As it may be vital for health it seems rather daft to use helium for trivia like balloons, either those which may be released, or for party balloons.

 

[SouthernR]

We should always consider the whole lifetime effect of any of our activities. The release of balloons will be low down on the scale of environmental concerns. However, banning it would publicise the issue. I'm sure only a small minority give a moment's thought to what happens to the balloons.
I frequently see balloons littering the countryside, and occasionally see the gas cylinders.
I see that helium is extracted from natural gas by fractional distillation. Once released to the atmosphere, most escapes into space. The helium used for balloons is diluted for safety.

 

[Ediswan]

The helium used for balloons is diluted for safety.

As used in small balloons, helium is safe by itself. What do you believe it is diluted with, to what extent, and how does that improve safety ?

 

[Mcr Warrior]

As used in small balloons, helium is safe by itself. What do you believe it is diluted with, to what extent, and how does that improve safety ?

On it's own, Helium is an asphyxiant, so presumably when used for small balloons it's diluted with Oxygen, maybe also Nitrogen.

Perhaps someone can confirm.

 

[AndrewE]

On it's own, Helium is an asphyxiant, so presumably when used for small balloons it's diluted with Oxygen, maybe also Nitrogen.

Perhaps someone can confirm.

Nitrogen is asphyxiant too, and makes up about 80% of the atmosphere, so if you diluted your helium with it the balloon wouldn't be buoyant anyway! Why waste oxygen extracted from the air using energy when you just want a low density gas?
(and you couldn't make silly voices if it wasn't pure He!)
I still think He balloons are a waste of the gas and (yet another ) source of litter.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Nitrogen is asphyxiant too, and makes up about 80% of the atmosphere, so if you diluted your helium with it the balloon wouldn't be buoyant anyway!

Indeed. Kind of defeats the raison d'être of balloons if they aren't buoyant. Must be an optimum dilution mix, and I would doubt that pure helium is used in the first place.

 

[Ediswan]

Indeed. Kind of defeats the raison d'être of balloons if they aren't buoyant. Must be an optimum dilution mix, and I would doubt that pure helium is used in the first place.

According to this, it would be more expensive to supply low grade helium, so there is a good chance your party balloon is filled with a higher grade than is needed for buoyancy.
https://zephyrsolutions.com/what-are-the-different-grades-of-helium-and-what-are-they-used-for/

Grade 5 (5.0 helium = 99.999% purity)
This high purity grade helium is also widely used for gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, and specific laboratory research when higher purity gases are not necessary, as well as for weather balloons and blimps.

Liquid helium is inherently extremely pure — far more pure than even Grade 5 helium actually, and liquid is the most efficient way to move product. Therefore, for helium suppliers to purposely offer a lower grade helium, they would actually have to add new operational methods and separate processes and transport specifically geared for the lower purities. All of this adds big costs of course, so most distributors simply stick to the industry standard transport of Grade 5. That is why for and end user of helium, a lower grade can cost more than the higher grades.

To misquote Bill Clinton "do not inhale".

 

[SouthernR]

https://www.partysafe.eu/balloon-ga...nd academic applications. Want to learn more?
This article claims that balloon gas (~95% He, 5% atmospheric gases) is a by-product of high purity He production. It is more expensive to purify this, than to use the normal process. (I assume the low grade He is produced when a batch process is started or shutdown. This suggests there is less low grade than high purity available, hence the cost difference.)
Currently we have a He surplus, but this may change as we reduce our use of fossil fuel. I don't think balloon gas will be a priority.
I can't remember where I heard that balloon gas was diluted to reduce the risk of asphyxiation, but agree that a significant dilution would remove the buoyancy.