The working principle of medical oxygen concentrator system

24 Mar 2023

The most commonly used equipment in the process of medical diagnosis and treatment is the medical oxygen concentrator air compressor, which can provide oxygen to patients and promote the orderly implementation of medical rescue work.

At present, our health care units as well as institutions often need to provide oxygen to patients in the process of medical treatment.

In the actual oxygen supply process, the relevant units mainly use liquid oxygen supply, oxygen cylinder oxygen supply and molecular sieve oxygen concentrator,which are oxygen production methods for related operations.

In fact, molecular sieve oxygen concentrators are favored by medical units because of their modular structure, automation, and ease of operation, and are widely used in the actual process of medical aid.

The workflow and principle of oxygen concentrator air compressor system

In order to further promote the development of medical and health care and the orderly implementation of medical aid work, medical units around the world have gradually strengthened the use of oxygen concentrator air compressors.

In fact, the air compressor system is able to ensure the proper operation of the oxygen molecular sieve during the actual operation.

At present, screw-type air compressors are widely used in the medical industry because of their high reliability and adaptability.

Workflow of air compressor system

In general, an air compressor system consists of four main components: suction regulator, compressor, pressure reservoir and piping (oil and gas lines).

The system operates by means of a suction regulator that draws in the air and transfers it to the compressor, where it is compressed by means of a coupling and a three-phase motor, and the compressed air is transferred to a pressure storage via a gas circuit.

Finally, the compressed air is filtered by means of a fine oil separator. The compressed air is then fed to the air storage tank through the minimum pressure check valve.

Working Principle

In the process of oxygen production by means of an air compressor system, a microcontroller is needed to control the air compressor and to ensure that it is in continuous operation.

Generally speaking, there are two operating conditions for the actual operation of the oxygen concentrator: loaded operation and no-load operation.

However, to ensure proper system operation, the technicians set two pressure points on the microcontroller with an upper limit of 0.74 MPa and a lower limit of 0.34 MPa.

Loading operation status

When the air compressor system is in loaded operation, the microcontroller provides the solenoid valve for the suction regulator.In general, the microcontroller controls the compressor to gradually shift to no-load operation when the pressure inside the equipment rises and reaches the upper limit.

No-load operation status

When the compressor is running at no load, the microcontroller will stop the power supply during operation and cause the air inlet to close, preventing air from entering. At this point, the pressure in the system gradually decreases, and when the value drops to the lower limit of 0.34 MPa, the microcontroller switches to the load operation state, and then to the non-stop alternating operation state.

Common Troubleshooting

When the pressure of the compressor system rises during operation but is below the upper limit of 0.74 MPa, the equipment remains in a loaded state.To address this issue, technicians need to step up their work on oxygen concentrators.

In this process, if the oxygen concentration and output status are in good condition, it means that the oxygen concentrator is functioning properly. The air filter in the intake of the shrinker needs to be replaced by a technician next.If the fault persists after the operation is completed, the air supply to the compressor should be analyzed and an off-line inspection program should be carried out.

The air storage tank replaces the pressure storage during the relevant operations with the help of the offline inspection program. Provides high air pressure for the system during actual operation, while the 24V DC power supply replaces the microcontroller for manual power supply. This solution is better able to analyze and identify the causes of suction regulator failures during the actual operation.

When the temperature of the air compressor exceeds 90°C during operation,in the process of troubleshooting and diagnosing this problem, it is necessary to first analyze the oil leakage of the air compressor system.In the actual inspection process, once the oil pipe rupture condition, the relevant equipment needs to be replaced in a timely manner.

If the oil pipes and other equipment are in normal condition, the oil filter, oil cooler and other equipment need to be cleaned.A large amount of debris and contaminants in the oil cooler can lead to problems such as high temperatures during operation.

In the course of this operation, when the external natural environment is of high temperature, the technicians concerned need to open the compressor door to promote the heat dissipation of the equipment.This situation can promote the compressor temperature reduction to the maximum extent and drive the oil tube life extension.

Care and Maintenance

In the process of promoting the efficient operation of air compressor systems, in addition to strengthening the diagnosis and resolution of various types of faults, it is also necessary to further promote the effective implementation of maintenance work.

In the course of actual maintenance operations, the air and oil filter elements of the equipment need to be replaced regularly.It is also necessary to strengthen the inspection of broken gas lines and pipelines and to effectively solve the related problems.

On the other hand, the personnel concerned also need to carry out regular cleaning for the various types of solenoid valve components in the equipment system.

Keywords: oxygen concentrator

Originally published 24 Mar 2023, updated 24 Mar 2023.