This invention is for an innovative magnetic air separator (MAS) for delivering oxygen-enriched air or near-pure oxygen to for advanced combustion, coal gasification, industrial processes, and medical applications. In the MAS of the subject invention, input air is drawn into a large array of microchannels immersed in a strong, spatially varying magnetic field. Magnetic forces accelerate the paramagnetic O2 molecules within the microchannel flow and in a direction perpendicular to it, thus forming enriched and depleted streams. Such streams are then physically separated and subsequently combined according to their level of O2 enrichment or depletion. Highly enriched streams are repeatedly subjected to the magnetic separation process until the targeted level of O2 concentration is reached in selected streams. Partially enriched streams are recycled and fed back into the process feedstock air, while depleted streams are vented from the process.

A control system for an onboard oxygen generating system (OBOGS) includes a gain control communicatively coupled to an oxygen sensor configured to measure an oxygen concentration outputted from the OBOGS. The gain control selectively switches between unbalanced and balanced bed cycling modes of the OBOGS to produce a target oxygen concentration based on demand. A corresponding method includes providing a gain control communicatively coupled to an oxygen sensor configured to measure an oxygen concentration outputted from the OBOGS, controlling the OBOGS to operate in the unbalanced bed cycling mode when a low demand is placed on the OBOGS whereby the gain control provides a short bed cycle and a corresponding long cycle of a fixed cycle time, and switching the OBOGS to operate in the balanced bed cycling mode when a high demand is placed on the OBOGS. The balanced bed cycling mode operates at a decreased bed cycle time.

A sieve bed assembly monitoring system is disclosed. The system includes a sieve bed assembly including a canister having an intake; adsorbent material to produce oxygen enriched air from compressed air in a swing adsorption process; and an identification device including identification data for the sieve bed assembly, wherein the identification data is capable of uniquely identifying the sieve bed assembly. The system includes an oxygen concentrator having a retention mechanism to retain the sieve bed assembly, a compressor supplying compressed air to the intake of the canister, a controller, a transceiver and a reader operable to read the identification data from the identification device. The controller reads the identification data and transmits the read identification data via the transceiver. A remote external device receives the read identification data from transceiver.

The present invention aims to improve the separation selectivity for light gases such as hydrogen and helium. The gas separation membrane according to the present invention includes a porous support layer and a separation functional layer containing a cross-linked polyamide and laid on the porous support layer, wherein: the separation functional layer has a protuberance structure containing a plurality of protrusions and recesses; randomly selected 20 of the protrusions on the surface of the separation functional layer indented under a load of 3 nN and observed in pure water at 25° C. by atomic force microscopy give an average deformation of 5.0 nm or more and 10.0 nm or less; and they give a standard deviation of the deformation of 5.0 nm or less.

A tank for accumulating oxygen enriched air from an oxygen concentration device is disclosed. The oxygen concentration device includes a canister including a nitrogen-adsorbent material. A compressor is coupled to the canister. The compressor compresses air for the canister to produce oxygen enriched air in a swing adsorption process. The tank includes a closed container for collecting oxygen enriched air produced in the canister. An inlet is coupled to the container. An outlet in the container allows a patient to inhale the collected oxygen enriched air. An adsorbent material within the container adsorbs oxygen enriched air added to the tank from the canister.

An oxygen concentrator comprises a product tank that is fluidly coupled to at least one sieve bed, and a product gas accumulator tank that is fluidly coupled to the product tank via a first conduit and to an outlet port via a second conduit, wherein the first conduit and the second conduit are disposed to allow at least a portion of product gas to flow from the product tank to the outlet port.

The present invention concerns the use, for gas separation, of at least one zeolite adsorbent material comprising at least one FAU zeolite, said adsorbent having an external surface area greater than 20 m.sup.2.Math.g.sup.−1, a non-zeolite phase (PNZ) content such that 0<PNZ≦30%, and an Si/Al atomic ratio of between 1 and 2.5. The invention also concerns a zeolite adsorbent material having an Si/Al ratio such that 1≦Si/Al<2.5, a mesoporous volume of between 0.08 cm.sup.3.Math.g.sup.−1 and 0.25 cm.sup.3.Math.g.sup.−1, a (Vmicro−Vmeso)/Vmicro ratio of between −0.5 and 1.0, non-inclusive, and a non-zeolite phase (PNZ) content such that 0<PNZ≦30%.

A device and method of generating an enriched gas within a nasal vestibule of a patient includes a housing, a chamber, a chamber inlet, a pump, a molecular sieve bed, a release outlet, and a breath duct. The chamber is configured to be received within the nasal vestibule. The pump is configured to direct an ambient air from an ambient environment into the chamber. The molecular sieve bed is positioned within the chamber and configured to collect a predetermined molecule from the ambient air thereby generating the enriched gas. The release outlet is configured to discharge the enriched gas from the chamber into the nasal vestibule. The breath duct longitudinally extends through the housing such that the breath duct is configured to fluidly communicate a fluid flow through the housing for nasal breathing by the patient while the chamber is positioned within the nasal vestibule.

An ambient oxygen concentrating torch has an oxygen concentrating unit disposed in operational communication with a second compressor whereby oxygen is sourced from the ambient atmosphere by Pressure Swing Adsorption and producible for pressurization and storage interior to a pressure tank. Controlled release of the stored oxygen is thereby enabled for combination with a hydrocarbon to effect combustion and production of a high-temperature flame as used in welding and cutting. Because oxygen is sourced from the ambient environment, and is continuously producible therefrom, need of separate oxygen canisters is entirely obviated.

The present disclosure relates to a radial flow reactor including a pair of beds configured to produce a product by processing a raw material supplied thereto. A substance being produced or the product is movable between the pair of beds before the product is moved to a separate reservoir. The ratio of the area of an outlet with respect to the area of an inlet in each of the pair of beds is adjusted such that, when the substance being produced or the product is introduced into the outlet of one bed of the pair of beds from the other bed of the pair of beds, limited processing efficiency caused by the limited area of the outlet in each of the pair of beds is overcome.