Absorption process for producing oxygen and nitrogen and solution therefor

Abstract From the Canadian patent

Process for the separation and purification of oxygen and nitrogen is disclosed which utilizes solutions of oxygen carriers to selectively absorb oxygen from a gaseous stream. In the process, an oxygen carrier capable of reversibly binding molecular oxygen is dissolved in a solvent solution, which absorbs oxygen from an oxygencontaining gaseous feed stream such as atmospheric air and desorbs oxygen to a gaseous product stream leaving nitro-, gen as a byproduct. The feed stream is maintained at a sufficiently high oxygen pressure to keep the oxygen carrier in its oxygenated form during absorption while, the product stream is maintained at a sufficiently low oxygen pressure to keep the …