Back to results
US 5,701,763 AGranted
Cryogenic hybrid system for producing low purity oxygen and high purity nitrogen
AssigneePraxair Technology, Inc.
InventorsHenry Edward Howard, Dante Patrick Bonaquist
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A hybrid system for producing both low purity oxygen and high purity nitrogen at high product recovery rates wherein desorption effluent from an adsorbent system feeds a cryogenic rectification column and, preferably, bottom fluid from the column provides additional feed for the adsorbent system.
Claims10
A method for producing low purity oxygen and high purity nitrogen comprising:
- (A) passing feed air into an adsorbent system comprising at least one adsorbent bed and adsorbing nitrogen from the feed air within the adsorbent system to produce oxygen-enriched vapor and nitrogen-enriched vapor;
- (B) recovering oxygen-enriched vapor as product low purity oxygen;
- (C) passing nitrogen-enriched vapor into a column and separating the nitrogen-enriched vapor by cryogenic rectification within the column into nitrogen top fluid and oxygen-containing bottom fluid;
- and
- (D) recovering nitrogen top fluid as product high purity nitrogen.
2 more elements
Apparatus for producing low purity oxygen and high purity nitrogen comprising:
- (A) an adsorbent system comprising at least one adsorbent bed and having feed input means whereby feed air is passed into the adsorbent system;
- (B) means for recovering low purity oxygen from the adsorbent system;
- (C) means for passing nitrogen-enriched vapor from the adsorbent system into a cryogenic rectification column;
- and
- (D) means for recovering fluid from the upper portion of the cryogenic rectification column as product high purity nitrogen.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.