Oxygen Plant

In an oxygen plant, oxygen is co-produced with various other gases. Some of the these gases include nitrogen, argon, and other rare gases. Oxygen is considered the most important gas. The primary application of this gas can be seen in steel manufacturing plants, in chemical processing, and in water treatment. Oxygen is also called the medical gas, but the one used for medical purposes is the purest form of oxygen. This form of oxygen is treated and purified to make it suitable for medical use. Although there is abundant oxygen present in our environment, it is not appropriate for the industrial and medical applications, unless and until it is treated and stored in cylinders in its gaseous or liquid form.

The best way to define the Oxygen Gas Plants is to say that these plants have low setup cost and can operate as small units or as massive plants. Oxygen plants usually operate on PSA/VPSA/VSA (Pressure Swing Adsorption/Vacuum Pressure Swing Adsorption/Vacuum Swing Adsorption) technology. Each of these technologies is used according to the need and appropriateness. It purely depends upon the technicalities of the application that which technology will prove most economical, hence to be employed.

The contemporary liquid oxygen plants make it feasible to produce and refine oxygen on-site at a very nominal cost. What's more, these plants provide the convenience of setting the purity level and pressure of the gas according to the requirement, and that too with optimum safety and reliability.


Oxygen Gas Plant Process

The process of producing oxygen from oxygen plant involves taking air from an air compressor, separating oxygen from nitrogen and other gases by means of special Zeolite Molecular Sieves. The system gives a continuous supply of oxygen by automatic switching towers on a timed cycle. It can be adjusted for a oxygen purity up to 94%, although the most economical for practical purposes is 85%.

In the process of regeneration, the adsorbed nitrogen is subsequently discharged as waste. The resulting product gas is around 85 to 94% pure oxygen available at around 2.5 kg/cm²g pressure. The gas is very dry containing little or no moisture.

Liquid Oxygen Plant

It is a known fact that through a series of ventures the different gases in air begin to separate at different temperature. With density of 1140 kg/m³, oxygen in its liquid form is produced, by an liquid oxygen plant, when natural air freezes and temperature goes down to -297 degrees fahrenheit.

The various industries where oxygen plant, find space are mini-steel plants, sewage treatment, pulp & paper, welding, ozone generation, brazing, battery manufacture, furnace enrichment, copper smelting, melting, glass industry, fish farming, , chemical oxidation etc.

Although oxygen represents only one-fifth of the gases that are produced, but it is the most valuable. The demand for oxygen has a major influence on the location of most gas plants. Hence, majority of Oxygen Plants are located near areas of principal application, steel works, manufacturing plants and major population centers. The two co-products of oxygen, that is, nitrogen and the rare gases if not vented, are shipped as required.