Karnataka: IISc analysts dispatch concentrator equipped for creating oxygen at over 93% virtue

KEY STORY 

• An oxygen concentrator designed and developed by the researchers of Indian Institute of Science (IISc) led by Praveen Ramamurthy, Professor in the Department of Materials Engineering, was launched Thursday.

• The group had been working on oxygen concentrators since March 2020. A prototype capable of producing oxygen at more than 93% purity at 5 litre per minute (LPM) and 82% at 10 LPM was developed by August 2020 itself.

• “The researchers then modified the prototype which now delivers more than 93-95 percent pure oxygen concentration at 10 LPM within 3 minutes. The stability and performance of the system was monitored continuously for more than eight months. Clinical trials have been completed, and the system was found to perform on par with compressed oxygen cylinders,” the IISc said in a statement.

• The institute claimed that the technology has been transferred to 24 companies and about 35 units have been supplied to various hospitals.

• Recently, the Karnataka Department of Health and Family Welfare had expressed interest in procuring the homegrown concentrators as a measure against the third wave.

• Another solution catering to the needs of the hospitals is an oxygen generation system based on a technology developed by an IISc team, including researchers Arashdeep Singh and Anand M Shivapuji, and led by S Dasappa, Professor at the Centre for Sustainable Technologies.

• The process is based on a twin-bed swing adsorption system integrated with storage and discharge vessels, and various safety systems. In one of the variants, a cylinder-filing mechanism has also been incorporated using a boost pump.

CONCLUSION

• The oxygen produced fulfils the quality requirements prescribed by Indian Pharmacopeia and can be used in ICUs/CCUs/OTs and other clinical wards. Last month, the first unit based on this system was installed at the Pobbathi Medical Centre in Bengaluru.

• IISc has also signed technology transfer agreements with four agencies from across the country for installing oxygen generation systems at various capacities (50 LPM-1000 LPM) to meet the requirements of hospitals.