據氣體世界網2022年5月6日報道，“世界上第一個”太陽能氦氣加工設備日前已開始制造。  

沙漠山能源公司（Desert Mountain Energy）是位于美國亞利桑那州的麥考利氦氣加工廠的幕后英雄，該氦氣加工廠將利用太陽能以一種環保的方式生產和加工氦氣。

除了其太陽能功能，麥考利氦氣加工廠還將使用麥考利氦氣田發現的氫氣作為備用能源。

為了進一步提高效率，沙漠山能源公司團隊設計的加工設備大部分采用了現成的組件和連接，并采用了最高的結構強度，以確保長使用期限。

沙漠山能源公司首席執行官羅伯特·羅爾芬表示：“我們很高興GENERON公司已經開始在麥考利氦氣加工設施上組裝。 沙漠山能源公司已經證明，我們能夠發現氦氣，這家氦氣加工廠將證明，我們可以直接生產氦氣、加工氦氣和把氦氣銷售給終端用戶。”

“麥考利氦氣加工廠啟動是我們目標的一個主要組成部分，計劃在第三季度某個時候完成。全球氦氣供應仍然嚴重短缺，沙漠山能源公司正努力成為解決方案的一部分。”

就在幾天前，美國咨詢公司恩布魯斯氦氣咨詢公司總裁菲爾· 恩布魯斯告訴氣體世界網記者，最近的一些進展預示著今年下半年氦氣供應的改善。  

李峻 編譯自 氣體世界網

原文如下：

‘World’s first’ solar-powered helium processing facility under construction

Fabrication has begun on the ‘world’s first’ solar-powered helium processing facility.

Desert Mountain Energy is behind the McCauley helium processing facility, based in Arizona, US, that will use solar energy to produce and process helium in a environmentally friendly manner.

In addition to its solar energy capabilities, the site will also use hydrogen discovered in the McCauley helium field as a back-up energy source. 

To further boost efficiency, the Desert Mountain Energy team have designed the processing facility with mostly off-the-shelf components and connections with the highest structural strengths to ensure a long-life span.

Robert Rohlfing, CEO of Desert Mountain Energy, said, “We are excited that GENERON has begun assembly on the McCauley helium processing facility. Desert Mountain Energy has proven that we can discover helium and the plant will demonstrate that we can produce, process and sell it directly to end-users.”

“Plant start-up, which is scheduled for completion sometime in the third quarter, is a major component of our goals. The worldwide helium supply continues to be in critically short supply and Desert Mountain Energy is striving to be part of the solution.”

News of the news site comes just days after Phil Kornbluth, President of Kornbluth Helium Consulting, told gasworld that there have been several recent developments that bode well for improved supply during the second half of 2022.