Current Status and Pain Points of Oxygen Application in Industries
2021.04.07
This method features high-purity product gas, but consumes a large amount of energy for compression and cooling. Depending on the production scale, the oxygen production cost ranges from 0.25 to 0.7 RMB per Nm³. Meanwhile, oxygen demand in electric arc furnace production is intermittent, whereas cryogenic oxygen production operates continuously. To meet production needs, oxygen bleeding often occurs during operation, with a bleeding rate of about 10% and sometimes over 20%.
Amid the boom in electric arc furnace resumption over the past two years, many restarted furnaces face an oxygen shortage. Due to the long construction cycle of oxygen production units, enterprises have to rely on purchased liquid oxygen vaporization for production supply. Driven by the strong steel market, liquid oxygen prices currently range from 1,200 to 3,000 RMB per ton, pushing enterprises’ oxygen cost to 1.7–4.3 RMB per Nm³, far above the industry average.
Some enterprises also suffer from unplanned short-term shutdowns in production due to environmental policies and local power supply restrictions, resulting in discontinuous operation. However, cryogenic separation oxygen units involve complicated startup and shutdown procedures; even under favorable conditions, a cold start still takes about 2–3 days. This makes this oxygen production method unsuitable for enterprises subject to policy-mandated shutdowns.
Compared with cryogenic separation, pressure swing adsorption (PSA) oxygen production technology features lower oxygen cost, simpler startup and shutdown, and convenient load adjustment, making it better suited to the oxygen demand of electric arc furnace production.
The above information is compiled and released by Suzhou Jiarui Gas, a supplier of PSA oxygen generation units.
Suzhou Jiarui Gas System Co., Ltd. is a high-tech enterprise specializing in the research and development of gas separation and purification technologies. The company is equipped with a R&D building and a gas separation equipment assembly workshop. It provides customers with services including PSA hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen production, as well as carbon dioxide purification and removal. We look forward to win-win cooperation with you.