§167o Low-btu Gas Separation and Helium Conservation

Summary

The Secretary of Energy must support research, development, commercial use, and conservation programs to boost U.S. production of low-Btu gas and helium, to separate and capture helium from natural gas, and to cut down on releasing (venting) helium during gas exploration and production. The Department must fund work on several specific areas: better membrane technology to separate low-Btu gases and remove helium and other gases that reduce natural gas energy; methods to find, gather, and process small amounts of helium in underground reservoirs and low-Btu production streams and to stop venting it; and, through the Advanced Manufacturing Office, low-cost ways to recycle and reuse helium for medical, scientific, industrial, commercial, aerospace, and federal uses and to capture helium from other chemical processes like ammonia production. Up to $3,000,000 may be appropriated for these efforts.