US 4,190,424 AGranted

Gas separation

AssigneeBOC Limited

InventorsJohn W. Armond, David A. Webber, Kenneth C. Smith

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Abstract

An air separation process using pressure swing adsorption techniques, for providing high purity oxygen. Two sections are employed one comprising beds of molecular sieve carbon and the other comprising beds of zeolite molecular sieve. Air is fed to a first of the sections which provides an oxygen-rich gas stream as feedstock for the next section where further enrichment takes place. The zeolite sieve section serves to effect a separation as between oxygen and nitrogen while the carbon sieve section serves to effect a separation as between oxygen and argon and the processes performed at each section are integrated in such a manner as to minimize power consumption and make use of gas recycled from the second section to the first in addition to the flow of gas from the first section to the second.

Claims15

Dependent claims

A gas separation process employing a first section including at least one bed of molecular sieve carbon operated on a pressure swing adsorption cycle and a second section including at least one bed of zeolite molecular sieve operated on a pressure swing adsorption cycle, the process comprising:

supplying a gas mixture containing oxygen, nitrogen and argon as feedstock to said first section;
said first section providing, during a desorption step thereof, a first gas stream enriched in oxygen and depleted in nitrogen and argon as compared to said gas mixture;
supplying such oxygen-enriched argon depleted gas as feedstock to the second section;
said second section providing, during a feed step thereof, a second gas stream further enriched in oxygen and depleted in nitrogen than said first gas stream and providing, during a desorption step thereof, a third gas stream enriched in oxygen as compared to said gas mixture but less so than said second gas stream;
and supplying said third gas stream to said first section to comprise part of the feedstock thereof.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.