The VPSA process

Tobacco process chart

Die Aufbereitung der Tabakblätter ist der wichtigste Schritt in der Herstellung von Tabakwaren. Zur Volumenvergrößerung der zerkleinerten Pflanzen werden Gase von Messer eingesetzt.

Tobacco expansion Aromatisation, Cutting, Drying and Rewetting Cigarette Production Storage Tobacco

Waste water

Our use of the resource water should be both sustainable and cost-effective. In waste water treatment the industrial gases oxygen and carbon dioxide are used to clean even heavily polluted wastewater thoroughly and economically and to facilitate its reuse.

Wet oxidation Neutralisation Town Industry Waste Water Treatment Plant River

Wine process chart

The process of wine-making consists of many carefully coordinated procedures with gases playing an important role. The applications include numerous cooling processes in which cryogenic gases are used, also inerting of storage tanks and filling under a protective gas atmosphere. 

Grape cooling Mash cooling Refreshing Storage and filling Mash Maceration Pressing Fermentation Filtration Transport

Working principle

1. Compression of air – Ambient air is drawn in, filtered and compressed ... 2. Precooling of air – ... and precooled with chilled water. 3. Purification of air – Impurities such as water vapor and carbon dioxide are then removed from the air in a so-called molecular sieve. 4. Cooling of air – Because the gases which make up air only liquefy at very low temperatures, the purified air in the main heat exchanger is cooled to approx. -175°C. The cooling is achieved by means of internal heat exchange, in which the flows of cold gas generated during the process cool the compressed air. Rapid reduction of the pressure then causes the compressed air to cool further, whereby it undergoes partial liquefaction. Now the air is ready for the separating column, where the actual separation takes place. 5. Separation of air – Separation of air into pure oxygen and pure nitrogen is performed in two columns, the medium-pressure, and the low-pressure columns. The difference in boiling point of the constituents is exploited for the separation process. Oxygen becomes a liquid at -183°C and nitrogen at -196°C. The continuous evaporation and condensation brought about by the intense exchange of material and heat between the rising steam and the descending liquid produces pure nitrogen at the top of the low-pressure column and pure oxygen at the bottom. Argon is separated in additional columns and involves some extra steps in the process. 6. Withdrawal and storage – Gaseous oxygen and nitrogen are fed into pipelines for transport to users, e.g., steelworks. In liquid form, oxygen, nitrogen and argon are stored in tanks and transported to customers by road tankers