Oxygen generation plants
PSA and VPSA oxygen from your own air, 90 to 95 per cent purity.
Technical data
- Working pressure
- 4 – 5 bar g
Overview
Oxygen delivered in cylinders or as liquid is expensive, and a significant part of what you pay for is transport and cylinder rental rather than gas. A generation plant makes it on site from compressed air, and for any site using oxygen continuously the arithmetic is usually decisive.
Pressure swing adsorption passes compressed air through a zeolite bed that holds nitrogen back and lets oxygen through. Two beds alternate, one producing while the other is regenerated by dropping the pressure. There is nothing consumed except electricity.
Key benefits
No deliveries and no cylinder rental
The two costs that are not gas. On a continuous user they are often most of the bill.
90 to 95 per cent purity
Which is what most industrial, aquaculture and medical support duties actually need.
Produces on demand
No stored inventory to manage and no risk of running out between deliveries.
Zeolite lasts for years
The adsorbent is not consumed. Looked after, a bed runs for ten years or more.
What decides whether it pays
Volume and continuity. A plant that uses oxygen steadily through the day pays back a generator quickly; one that uses a cylinder a week never will. The crossover is usually somewhere around a few cylinders a day.
Purity is the other factor. PSA reaches around 95 per cent, which covers welding support, aquaculture, water treatment and a great deal of industrial use. Medical breathing oxygen and anything needing 99 per cent plus is a different plant and a different conversation.
The air supply matters more than people expect. The generator's output depends on the quality and pressure of the air feeding it, so the compressor, the dryer and the filtration are part of the oxygen plant rather than something it is connected to afterwards.
- Pays on continuous use, not occasional
- 90 to 95 per cent purity from PSA
- Higher purity needs a different process
- Air quality directly affects output
- Compressor, dryer and filters sized with it
- Buffer storage smooths the demand
Model range
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 10 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 15 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 20 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 30 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 40 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 50 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 60 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 70 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 80 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 100 m³/h
- 4 – 5 bar g
- 200 m³/h
Performance to ISO 1217 Annex C at 20 °C inlet, 1 bar(a). Figures are typical and subject to confirmation. Ask us for the certified test report for your selected model.
Frequently asked questions
What purity can it reach?
Around 95 per cent with PSA. Above that needs a different process, and for medical breathing oxygen the regulatory requirements are separate from the technical ones.
How quickly does it pay back?
It depends entirely on how much you use and what you pay per cylinder. Give us both and we will calculate it before you commit.
Does the adsorbent need replacing?
Not often. Zeolite is not consumed by the process and lasts many years, provided the air feeding it is clean and dry. Wet air is what kills a bed.
How does PSA actually work?
Compressed air passes through a zeolite bed that holds nitrogen back and lets oxygen through. Two beds alternate, one producing while the other is regenerated by dropping the pressure.
What is the crossover against cylinders?
Usually somewhere around a few cylinders a day. Below that a generator rarely pays; above it the arithmetic is normally decisive.
What air quality does it need?
Clean and dry. The compressor, the dryer and the filtration are part of the oxygen plant rather than something connected to it afterwards.
Can it supply a hospital?
Medical oxygen is a regulated system with its own approvals, duplex plant, alarms and records. We supply it as a system rather than as a generator.
How much electricity does it use?
Essentially the compressor's consumption. That figure, times your tariff, is the running cost, and it is what the payback is calculated against.
Does it need buffer storage?
Yes, so the plant runs steadily at purity rather than chasing demand. Sizing follows from your demand profile rather than a rule of thumb.
Is VPSA different from PSA?
It uses vacuum on the regeneration side, which lifts efficiency at larger scale. Below a certain size the extra complexity does not repay itself and we will say so.
Related products
Not sure which model you need?
Send us your air demand, working pressure and running hours. Our engineers will size the machine and send a written recommendation, no cost, no obligation.