Oxygen is a life-sustaining gas without which no life is possible. It is odorless, tasteless and highly reactive gas constituting 21% of Earth’s atmosphere. Plants are able to generate oxygen in the presence of sunlight through a process known as photosynthesis. Oxygen is also generated using industrial processes for use in medical and industrial applications. Generating oxygen gas at home is ideal for patients suffering from lack of adequate oxygen due to an underlying health disorder and needs constant oxygen therapy. How much oxygen a person requires would be determined by a physician after testing oxygen blood level.
How oxygen can be generated at home?
There are many chemical processes via which one can generate oxygen but they are not suitable for practical applications. For example, O2 can be produced by electrolysis of water those who studied chemistry in Senior Secondary School must know. However, the setup for generating oxygen through this process requires intricate electrical setup with mains AC current. It is a risky method if you are not adept in handling electric equipment. Moreover, there is no way you could store the gas generated through this process.
Production of oxygen with concentrator
However, there is a way for generating oxygen gas which can be used for consumption for undergoing oxygen therapy. This could be best done by using an oxygen concentrator. It is a small and portable device that takes atmospheric air which is then enriched to oxygen with purity between 90-95%. It is the best equipment for generating oxygen at home for personal consumption. Moreover, it is easy to operate and maintain and is affordable.
The process of oxygen generation is also very simple. It is takes room air which is compressed and purified inside the concentrator. It is made up of motor and compressor, heat exchanger, surge tank, four way solenoid valve, molecular sieve beds and product tank with pressure regulator and flow meter adjusting valve.
Working principle of oxygen concentrators
The room air after being compressed is filtered into the concentrator directing the air in an uninterrupted stream. After compression, the air moves into sieve bed filters where nitrogen is removed from the air. Sieve bed is filled with Zeolite which is a six-sided microscopic cube with holes on each side and helps to remove nitrogen from the air. There are two sieve beds and air is directed into the first bed moving oxygen into the product tank. When the first bed is saturated with nitrogen the compressed air is moved into the 2nd sieve bed generating oxygen and moving it into the product tank.
Two sieve beds are located in the concentrator. After air is first compressed in the concentrator, it is forced into the first sieve bed. Oxygen is sent into the product tank. The first sieve bed then gets filled up with nitrogen. Next, the gas flow is switched, and the compressed air is moved to the second sieve bed. The first sieve bed’s compressor is sent to the outside room, and the air from the product tank goes back into the first sieve bed.
The drop in pressure from the first sieve bed and the weakening of oxygen makes the Zeolite release nitrogen. The Oxygen and Nitrogen come back together and are released in the room as regular air. The air is then compressed and sent to the second sieve where Oxygen is moved through it to the Product Tank. The whole cycle starts over again with the first sieve after a few seconds.
Other important parts are the cooling system that keeps the portable oxygen concentrator from overheating, and the nasal cannula that delivers the purified oxygen after the oxygen has been passed through all the sieve bed filters. The cannula helps improve oxygen absorption.
If you want to produce high purity oxygen on large scale you can install oxygen plant.
Know more about oxygen plant visit:
www.betterdealmachinery.com/blog/how-oxygen-plant-produces-pure-oxygen/
