A Novel Liquid Oxygen Recharger for Home Oxygen Therapy

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The specific aim of this project is to develop and demonstrate a low-cost, liquid oxygen (LOX) generation system to support ambulatory patients using Home Oxygen Therapy (HOT). Currently in the United States, yearly expenditures on HOT are nearly two billion dollars. These expenditures will increase dramatically over the next ten years due to the aging baby-boomer generation. The increase in use of LOX- based HOT systems is expected to continue due to demographics, patient and clinician preferences, and the general success of HOT as a treatment regimen. The primary drawback of LOX-based systems is the high-operational cost, because the storage reservoir for these systems must be frequently refilled with LOX. Creare's innovation is a Miniaturized LOX Generation System (MLGS). This novel device is a small, low-power, low-cost system that generates liquid oxygen from atmospheric air. The basis of the innovation is the miniaturization of the liquid oxygen systems we have developed for the military and NASA. Our novel system will directly refill the portable LOX unit, eliminating the need for the storage reservoir and the LOX re-supply infrastructure. Thus, our innovation will substantially reduce the cost of LOX-based HOT, while improving convenience, safety, and compliance. During Phase I, we clearly demonstrated the feasibility of our innovation and exceeded our technical objectives by designing, demonstrating, and optimizing a highly compact proof-of-concept system for the production of high-purity (>99%) LOX in excess of the original design flow rate. We also completed the preliminary design of a prototype that will be used for the refilling of a commercially available portable LOX unit. We have reached an agreement with a leading supplier of LOX- based HOT systems for the sales and marketing of our innovation. During Phase II, we will design, fabricate, and test the MLGS prototype and transition our innovation to our partner for commercialization.