Helium Production in the United States

Abstract

THE developments of the last twenty years in helium production in the United States are described in Engineering of January 26. Reference is made to a lecture delivered recently in the College of Engineering of the University of Maryland by Dr. C. W. Siebel, supervising engineer of the Government-owned helium plant near Amarillo, Texas, and to a memorandum issued by the United States Bureau of Mines. The present helium-producing plant at Amarillo has a capacity of 24 million cubic feet of helium of 98·2 per cent purity a year, but it is stated in the Bureau of Mines memorandum that, by installing another production unit in existing buildings, the output could be raised to 36 million cubic feet a year. As the present military and commercial requirements, aggregating approximately 6 million cubic ft. a year, are met by operating the plant at about one quarter of the installed capacity, there is a large reserve for emergencies.