BlueSeal magnet
The new reality in helium-free MR operations

Philips BlueSeal magnet is the industry's first and only 1.5T fully sealed magnet, relieving you from helium-related complications and unpredictability. BlueSeal magnet requires only 0.5% of helium compared to a conventional Philips MR system. Addressing helium scarcity through innovating with purpose to secure the future for all MR patients.

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The new reality in MR is operating helium-free:
innovating with purpose today to secure the future for all MR patients

With the launch of the Ingenia Ambition 1.5T MR scanner with BlueSeal, we made helium-free MR operations the new reality in MR – and contributed to Philips aspiration to improve people’s health and well-being through meaningful innovation.

With hundreds of BlueSeal magnets in operation worldwide, our focus is on expending this breakthrough technology to our entire portfolio, supporting uninterrupted MR operations and providing clinicians with high diagnostic quality to make the right decisions in every defining moment.

Experience the benefits of sustainable and
more productive helium-free MR operations²

With the BlueSeal magnet, Philips aims to deliver sustainable and more productive MR operations to MR facilities. Our goal? To take away your worries about potential helium-related issues of classic magnet design, to support uninterrupted MR services and to eliminate your dependency on scarce helium supply.

Forget about helium

Easy siting, lower costs

Towards uninterrupted MR operations

Forget about helium

Philips BlueSeal uses a new, highly efficient micro-cooling technology which requires just 7 liters of liquid helium for cooling, instead of the 1,500 liters that conventional magnets use. This tiny amount of liquid helium is placed in the magnet and fully sealed during manufacturing, enclosing the precious gas for the rest of its life. No liquid helium can escape.¹ This reduces potential long interruptions to MR services due to helium issues and eliminates helium refill costs during the magnet’s lifetime.

“We won’t have any problems of refilling during the machine’s lifetime and we can forget about the helium. This will save us money and help us be more environmentally friendly”

Dr. Marίa del Mar Travieso, Head of Radiology Department, Hospitales San Roque, Spain

Easy siting, lower costs

Siting with classic magnet

On a classic magnet, long vent pipes must be installed to meet safety requirements and direct helium to an outside vent in case of a magnet quench. Because no liquid helium can escape¹, the Philips BlueSeal magnet does not need a vent pipe, significantly reducing construction costs of new installations.

Siting with BlueSeal magnet

With a minimum siting requirement of 3,700 kg, the BlueSeal system is around 900 kg lighter than its predecessor.² This can potentially facilitate easier siting, reduce floor adaptations and further lower construction costs.

Towards uninterrupted MR operations

Did you know that 54% of MR facilities had at least one magnetic item become stuck in an MRI system in the last 3 years?⁴ No matter how careful you are, it can happen and it’s not an easy fix. Philips BlueSeal qualifies as the first magnet driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support a set of unique service functionalities called EasySwitch. If a magnetic item becomes stuck in the bore, EasySwitch gives you the power to discharge and re-energize the magnet from behind your MR console with a single click. This means small incidents can be resolved in just a few hours with minimal disruption to your radiology practice. In addition, with EasySwitch, your BlueSeal magnet can be proactively discharged to prepare for natural disasters or other emergencies

“In the event of a major disaster like an earthquake we can get these machines up and running again relatively quickly making them excellent from the perspective of hospital risk management too.”

Prof. Hashimoto, Tokai University Hospital, Japan

Still not convinced?
Discover the myths and facts about helium-free MR operations

Myth #1

It’s impossible for an MR system to run for 24 hours a day on just 7 liters of helium.

Myth #2

Helium is an infinite resource that we can produce ourselves.

Myth #3

An MRI system with helium-free MR technology does not have sufficient power to produce excellent image quality.

Frequently asked questions about BlueSeal

If no vent-pipe is needed, how do you provide pressure control?

In case of spontaneous loss of field, the temperature of the superconducting coils increases and the pressure in the cooling system increases to a medium pressure that is fully contained. This pressure is four times lower than the pressure that was used when filled during manufacturing (at room temperature). The magnet is fully designed to accommodate this and meets the ASME and PED standards related to pressurized vessels.

Beyond siting and construction, how can Philips BlueSeal help facilitate on-site safety procedures?

IEC International standard 60601-2-33 describes the particular requirements for the safety of magnetic resonance equipment for medical diagnosis. Since the BlueSeal magnet has a fractional amount of helium contained in a closed cooling system, no helium can escape during a loss of field. As a result, the following IEC requirements do not apply, which helps to simply on-site safety procedures:

NO provisions for supply of liquid cryogen. e.g procedures to be performed after gas release or precautions against lack of oxygen.
NO safety provisions in the event of a quench. e.g emergency plan in the event of a quench

How are the clinical properties affected with this new technology based on a fractional amount of Helium?

The resulting magnet performance is amongst the best in the industry, with excellent homogeneity (≤ 0.9 ppm, at 45 cm DSV), high gradients linearity (amplitude 45 mT/m, slew rate 200 T/m/s) and a superb field-of-view of 55 cm.

In case of patient emergency, how long does it take to ramp the magnet down? How different is it from a controlled ramp-down?

In case of a patient emergency, the system will ramp-down immediately after pushing the Emergency Ramp Down Unit button (ERDU). It will take < 3 days to be back in operation. In case an object is stuck in the bore (injector, cleaning tool, etc.), it will take about 1 hour to de-energize the magnet from the service environment on the operator console and <24 hours to be back in operation⁵. In both cases, all helium moves to gas state and remains contained in the fully sealed cooling system.

Want to discover how this revolutionary solution can improve your MR operations?

Let’s get in touch and one of our specialists will help you make the switch to more sustainable and productive helium-free MR services.

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Learn all about the BlueSeal magnet

Helium-free MR operations is a hot topic among MR experts. Find out more about how the BlueSeal technology works and read the latest views from the experts in the field.

Brochure

The new reality in MR

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Installation video

Helium-free MR operations to Nepean Hospital Sydney

Watch video

Customer story

Learn how MCVI boosts MRI quality.

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¹Even in the rare case of the magnet becoming unsealed, the negligible amount of helium escaping would not materially affect the oxygen level within the room.

² Compared to the Ingenia 1.5T ZBO magnet.

³ In isotropic 3D MSK VIEW scans, compared to Philips scans without Compressed SENSE.

⁴ Marketech June 2017 study (across vendors).

⁵The amount of liquid-helium saved is a calculation compared to a classic magnet with 1500 liters of helium.

BlueSeal magnet The new reality in helium-free MR operations

The new reality in MR is operating helium-free: innovating with purpose today to secure the future for all MR patients

Experience the benefits of sustainable and more productive helium-free MR operations2