The PHD-4 Portable Helium Detector

Global Application Support

Expertise When & Where You Need It

• Thousands of portable SIPD sniffing helium detectors are in daily use worldwide.
• Helium leak testing is the preferred solution in a broad range of applications and industries.
• Native language application specialists available locally.

High Performance Instruments

Wide Range, PHD-4 Portable Helium Detector

• High Sensitivity to Helium
• Easy to Use
• Truly Portable
• Versatile
• Dependable

Industry Leading Service & Support

Get The Most From Your Investment

• The system is designed to allow easy replacement of sampling line components in the field.
• Exchange units are available for rapid field replacement.
• Support programs can be tailored to meet your most demanding needs.

High Sensitivity to Helium - Can detect very small leaks

• High Sensitivity (2 ppm) to helium, three orders of magnitude better than industry standard, due to SIPD (proprietary and patented Selective Ion Pump Detection).
• Excellent selectivity for helium allows you to read helium leaks and ignore all other gases.
• Helium sensitivity can be adjusted as required to minimize test costs and helium consumption.
• Autozero function allows leak detection even in unstable helium background environments.

Easy to Use - No training required

• State-of-the-art microprocessor control allows great simplicity of operation.
• Fully automatic start-up with auto-diagnostics.
• Ready for test in less than 3 minutes.
• Intuitive display screen.
• Visual and audio indicators (standard headphone connection).
• No tuning required.

Truly Portable - Compact and light

• The PHD-4 weighs only 2.6 Kg (5.7 lbs) including the battery.
• Its compact size allows it to be easily carried anywhere.
• Its ergonomic design allows comfortable use for extended periods.

Versatile - Suitable for many different applications

• Wide range of uses: replaces or can be used with existing methods such as bubble test or pressure decay.
• Able to detect both very small and large leaks.
• Can operate either on battery power or connected to a mains power supply.
• Displayed messages can be viewed in several languages (English, French, German, Italian).
• Standard Analog and RS232 Serial I/O.

Dependable - Long term operation

• Automatic backflow valve helps prevent helium saturation, ensuring fast recovery time as well as long life of sensing element.
• CE, CSA/US approved for global standardization.

Technical Specifications

Ordering Information

Accessories

Individual Replacement Parts

Contact Agilent for Rack mounting or specific application requirements.

Large Vessels and Bioreactors

The PHD-4 offers unmatched accuracy and repeatability, presenting a unique solution that is cost effective and very well suited for the leak range specifications of this application. Biotech and pharmaceutical industries used to rely on pressure decay and bubble test methods for finding leaks in their large bioreactors. The PHD-4 has established a new standard of quality, significantly increasing production yields.

• Fermenters
• Sterilizers
• Freeze Dryers

Underground Pipes and Storage Tanks

The portability and light weight of the PHD-4 plays a major role in this application. Underground pipes and storage tanks (UST) are slightly pressurized with helium which, due to its high mobility, can escape through small leaks and migrate to the surface, where it can be easily detected by the PHD-4. The accuracy, portability and light weight of this unit greatly simplifies this process, particularly in difficult construction sites or rough terrain.

• Gas distribution lines
• Under and above ground containers and storage tanks
• Telecommunication and high voltage underground cables

Water Heating and Cooling Pipes

The PHD-4 allows leak location without interruption of the normal operation, by mixing helium with the water in the circuit. Until recently, the precise and rapid location of leaks in buried pipes has been very difficult. In the event of a leak, helium desorbs from the fluid and diffuses to the surface, where it is easily detected. Leaks in pipeline systems such as district heating systems, drinking or chilled water systems and steam pipe networks incur high costs due to losses and corrosion damage.

• Heater exchangers and steam condensation lines
• Water pipes
• Radiant heating systems

Airplane Fuel Tanks and Lines

PHD-4 technology is approved worldwide by airplane manufacturers and operators as the standard for the location of leaks in aircraft fuel tanks and in oxygen distribution lines. Agilent works with an exclusive distributor for aircraft applications. Please contact your local Agilent office for more information.

• Fuel tanks
• Oxygen distribution lines

Other Applications

The PHD-4 is in daily use in many other applications. Its portability makes it ideal for factory and field maintenance. Here is a partial list of other applications:

• Components and systems for the Chemical and Petrochemical Industries
• Compressed air components and delivery systems
• Process gas delivery lines in Semiconductor fabrication industry

Principle of Operation

The PHD-4 principle of operation is based on an Agilent patented technology, Selective Ion Pump Detection (SIPD). The sensor incorporates a quartz capillary tube maintained under high vacuum by an ion pump. The quartz tube is heated with a platinum filament and becomes permeable to helium. As the partial pressure of helium in the ion pump increases, so does the current drawn by the ion pump, proportional to the pressure, indicating the helium concentration present in the test probe of the PHD-4.

WHY USE HELIUM AS A TRACER GAS?

• It is inert, non-toxic and non-flammable.
• It can pass easily through leaks due to its small atomic size, allowing the detection of very small leaks.
• It is present in the atmosphere at only 5 ppm, thus reducing the possibility of false readings.
• It is highly mobile, allowing rapid desorption and short measurement times.
• When used properly, it is the most economical and allows the highest sensitivity, of all trace gases.

Learn more:

www.agilent.com/chem/phd-4

Contact Us:

• U.S. and Canada (toll free): +1 800 882 7426, vpl-customercare@agilent.com
• Europe (toll free): +00 800 234 234 00, vpt-customercare@agilent.com
• China (toll free): 400 8206778 (mobile), 800 8206778 (landline), contacts.vacuum@agilent.com
• Asia Pacific: inquiry_lsca@agilent.com
• Other countries: +39 011 9979 132