On-site adsorptive oxygen generators and helium purification systems: Design, optimization and scale-up

Oxygen Solutions Inc（OSI）是一家总部位于埃德蒙顿的公司，由Benchmark International拥有，生产用于水产养殖、采矿、废水处理等的空气制氧（100至7000 SCFH O2）的真空变压吸附（VSA）系统。VSA系统采用分子筛和独特的操作配置（称为循环），以从空气中浓缩O2。该联盟项目的主要目标是：1.提高性能并扩大O2发电机组的范围，以保持在市场上的竞争力。2.开发基于吸附的氦气纯化工艺，目标是最近在阿尔伯塔和萨斯喀彻温省发现的氦气威尔斯井，这是一个有前途的多元化市场。过程建模2.开发先进的工艺配置; 3.基于计算机的工艺配置优化; 4.探索先进的吸附剂和5;通过使用计算流体动力学设计新型气体分配系统。将在现场视察专门为此项目建造的一个装有全套仪器的试验台上对所开发的程序进行测试。来自试验台的反馈将允许改进过程模型，并将能够确定适合大型装置的操作条件。最后，本项目中设计的先进配置和气体分布器将在商业装置上放大和实施。该项目将培养7名高素质的人才，他们将获得宝贵的建模和实验经验。他们还将受益于与OSI工程师的密切合作。 该项目的成功将使加拿大受益，使OSI成为氧气发生器和氦气纯化技术供应的世界领导者，并通过增加出口和创造就业机会实现经济增长。

Oxygen Solutions Inc (OSI) is an Edmonton-based company, owned by Benchmark International, manufacturing vacuum swing adsorption (VSA) systems for oxygen(O2) generation (100 to 7000 SCFH O2) from air for aquaculture, mining, waste water treatment, etc. The VSA systems employ a molecular sieve and a unique operating configuration (called cycle) in order to concentrate O2 from air. The key objectives of this Alliance project are: 1.Improve the performance and expand the range of O2 generation units with an aim to remain competitive in this market. 2. Develop adsorption-based processes for Helium purification, targeted at Helium wells recently identified in Alberta and Saskatchewan, as a promising market to diversify.This project will aim to achieve these goals through 1. Process modelling 2. Development of advanced process configurations; 3. Computer-based optimization of process configurations; 4. Exploration of advanced sorbents and 5; Design of novel gas distribution systems through the use of computational fluid dynamics. The processes developed will be tested in a fully instrumented test-bed that will be built by OSI specifically for this project. The feedback from the testbed will allow the improvement of process models and will enable the identification of suitable operating conditions for large-scale units. Finally the advanced configurations and gas distributors designed in this project will be scaled-up and implemented on commercial units. The project will train 7 Highly qualified personnel who will gain valuable experience in modeling and experimentation. They will also benefit from working closely with Engineers at OSI. The success of this project will benefit Canada by positioning OSI as a world leader in the supply of O2 generators and helium purification technology and result in economic growth through increased exports and creation of employment opportunities.