Supply and Demand of Helium-3 (3He)
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The need for 3He in the United States is outpacing production
The Department of Energy (DOE) has supplied isotopes and isotope-related
services to the Nation and to foreign countries for more than
50 years. The Isotope Development and Production for Research and
Applications Program, Office of Nuclear Physics, Office of Science,
is responsible for the sale and distribution of 3He,
but not the production of 3He. The sole production of
3He is from the refurbishment and dismantlement of
the nuclear stockpile as a
byproduct from the radioactive decay of tritium where it is
separated during the tritium cleaning process at the National
Nuclear Security Administration's (NNSA) Savannah River Site (SRS)
in South Carolina. This 3He has been made available to commercial
entities through an auction conducted by the Isotopes Program.
Currently, the need for 3He in the United States is outpacing
production. The increased demand is due to the expanded use of
3He in neutron detectors for national security, nonproliferation,
defense, border security, and homeland security applications.
In addition, 3He is also used in many other applications such
as medical diagnostics, the oil and gas industry, and basic
science research. Since 2003, DOE has sold over 175,000
liters of 3He, drawing down a significant portion of the
Department's inventory. Projected demand for 3He is about
65,000 liters per year through 2013 but the 3He
production in the United States is estimated to be only
a small fraction of that per year for FY 2010 and beyond.
The result is that U.S. production alone cannot meet anticipated worldwide demand.
The Office of Science is participating in a governmental
interagency 3He Integrated Product Team (IPT) composed of
the Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration,
Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, and
other government agencies. This group has been formed to
address the decreasing supply of 3He. Discussions of this
group include the pursuit of alternative technologies for
neutron detection, finding alternative methods for
production of 3He for those applications for which
there is no other alternative, and allocation of the
existing supply.
Please click here to request a quote for 3He.
Note: you will be redirected to the Linde website
where you will need to register before completing a quote request.
For more information and questions, please contact
Dr. Jehanne Gillo
Director, Facilities and Project Management Division
Office of Nuclear Physics
U.S. Department of Energy
SC-26.2, Germantown Building
1000 Independence Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20585-1290
phone: (301)-903-1455
fax: (301)-903-3833
email: Jehanne.Gillo@science.doe.gov