The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 04, 2000
Filed:
Jan. 29, 1999
Robert F Duke, Bridgewater, NJ (US);
Joseph P Naumovitz, Lebanon, NJ (US);
Charles Brooks, North Plainfield, NJ (US);
The BOC Group, Inc., New Providence, NJ (US);
Abstract
A method and apparatus for separating out is used to produce an oxygen product in which an air stream after having been compressed and purified is introduced into a bottom reblower located in a bottom region of the distillation column to produce boil up in such distillation column. The resultant air stream liquefies to produce a liquid air stream. The liquid air stream after having been valve expanded is stripped within the distillation column to produce a column bottoms which can be extracted as a product stream that is vaporized within a main heat exchanger. Product stream can be pressurized by being pumped to atmospheric a pressure hence liquefying a further compressed air stream to produce further liquid air is also stripped within the distillation column. The distillation column operates at near atmospheric pressures that is pressures between 1 and 1.3 bar absolute. Refrigeration is introduced into the plant by injecting liquid preferably liquid oxygen into a bottom region of the distillation column.