How Does Helium-3 Energy Output Compare to Traditional Explosives?

[DaveR]

I am giving a presentation on helium 3 for a future energy source and i am looking for a way to describe (and compare) how much energy is released in a helium 3 reaction (D-T would be fine). some thing that would be clear to people who have no science background. (i.e. the amount of H-3 that could fit in this raquet ball would be more powerful than a truckload of TNT) something like that anyway.
Thanks
Dave

 

[jdavel]

I am giving a presentation on helium 3 for a future energy source and i am looking for a way to describe (and compare) how much energy is released in a helium 3 reaction (D-T would be fine). some thing that would be clear to people who have no science background. (i.e. the amount of H-3 that could fit in this raquet ball would be more powerful than a truckload of TNT) something like that anyway.
Thanks
Dave

What's a helium 3 reaction?

 

[Gokul43201]

It's a fusion reaction : He-3 + deuterium gives He-4 + proton + bucketfull of energy

Scientists estimate there are about 1 million tons of helium 3 on the moon, enough to power the world for thousands of years. The equivalent of a single space shuttle load or roughly 25 tons could supply the entire United States' energy needs for a year, according to Apollo17 astronaut and FTI researcher Harrison Schmitt.

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/helium3_000630.html

 

[Meir Achuz]

You must mean Hydrogen 3 (tritium) + deuterium.
The mass difference between d+t and He + n is 17.59 MeV.
Multiplying this by Avagadro's number (for one mole), and converting to Joules,
I get (Check my arithmetic.) 1.7 X 10^12 Joules released.
I guess that would be written as 1.7 tJ. (That's more than I make in a year.)
That would be the energy release for one mole (3 grams) of H3 on one mole
(2 grams) of deuterium.