How To Create Oxygen Artificially

How Does an Oxygen Concentrator Work?

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Oxygen concentrators convert room air to highly oxygenated air for people who need supplemental oxygen. Here's some information about how oxygen concentrators work.

Components of Room Air

Room air (also called ambient air) is composed of several gases. Typically, ambient air is 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen and one percent trace gases, including carbon dioxide and argon. If the majority of nitrogen is removed from room air, the air would then be composed of around 95 to 99 percent oxygen.

Oxygen concentrators are designed to remove most of the nitrogen from ambient air. Oxygen concentrators run on electricity, which may be provided by a battery, or by directly plugging the device into a wall outlet.

Oxygen Concentrator Parts

An oxygen concentrator is made up of several key components, which include:

Multiple filters
Air compressors
Molecular sieve beds
Output switch valves
Cooling systems
Oxygen outlets
Flow meters or pulse settings

The filters in the oxygen concentrator remove impurities in ambient air, including dust and dander. The filters also protect the inner components from debris damage. Next, the air enters the first of two molecular sieve beds. Molecular sieve beds are the components that remove nitrogen from the air. Sieve beds are made up of molecular particles that are six-sided cubes called Zeolite. In the first sieve bed, air is compressed and nitrogen is absorbed from the air. Directly before the first sieve bed is fully saturated with nitrogen, the switch valve causes the compressed air from the first molecular sieve bed to enter the second molecular sieve bed. The nitrogen collected by the sieve beds is vented out into the room from the second sieve bed, while the remaining highly oxygenated air is directed at the patient through the oxygen collection tank outlet. The flow meter or pulse setting regulates the amount of flow delivered to the patient.

Oxygen Concentrator Settings

Oxygen concentrators can be used on one of two modes. The first mode is the pulse dose mode, which is intended for daytime use with a nasal cannula. Each pulse or bolus is a small puff of oxygenated air that's made available to the patient. Continuous flow is the other mode used on oxygen concentrators. The highly oxygenated air flows all the time at a liter-per-minute rate.

Size of Oxygen Concentrators

Pulse-flow models are smaller than continuous-flow oxygen concentrators. Continuous-flow models must produce more oxygen than pulse-flow models, so the molecular sieves and batteries are much larger in the continuous flow units.

Oxygen Concentrator Details

Pulse-flow units can only deliver up to three liters per minute of oxygen. The machines are triggered by nasal breaths. Continuous oxygen concentrators can deliver higher flows of oxygenated air. Both types of machines must be prescribed by a licensed physician or other approved health care provider, according to the American Thoracic Society.