Absstem Technologies: Helping Hospitals produce their own Medical oxygen 24/7!

The second wave of coronavirus has hit the country hard. With India witnessing a massive spike in COVID-19 patients admitted in the hospitals needing medical oxygen for survival, we endure a severe health crisis as there is a shortage of medical oxygen and an inadequate supply chain. Big or small, hospitals are undergoing a tough time in arranging an adequate amount of oxygen supply to meet this special requirement in patient care. The government, private entities, and people are bending over backward to overcome this catastrophic situation. DRDO’s decision of earmarking On-Board Oxygen Generation System (OBOGS) used in Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) for civilian use and coronavirus duty is an innovative case in point today.

As we are acquiring oxygen cylinders from factories in India and across the globe, the chances of repeated handling are respectively high. Considering the current scenario this process may inflate the risk of contaminating the cylinders which can make the situation even more complex. The sanitization protocols issued by the government and several other conditions are further disrupting the on-time delivery of oxygen cylinders, giving rise to impediments such as unavailability of oxygen, increase in the price, and so forth.

Absstem Technologies’ PSA-based disruptive solution-Medical Oxygen Generator-MedO surfaces as the savior which is capable of measuring up the sudden surge in the demand for oxygen in the country. This onsite Medical oxygen solution’s unique and high-tech features can generate medical oxygen instantly at the hospital site. It is affordable, convenient, reliable, safe generates oxygen 24/7, and requires minimum maintenance.

This Delhi-based startup, led by Mohit Sharma has to date executed over 18 deployments in different hospitals in India and across the world. Today, the team is putting their brains together to help hospitals be self-reliant by having an uninterrupted and continuous supply of oxygen.

How does it function?

The oxygen concentrator consists of an air compressor that pulls atmospheric air into the system, Refrigeration Dryer that removes water vapor from compressed air, a Multistage filtration system that removes impurities, and a PSA system to remove nitrogen and other trace gases and process oxygen and HEPA filters to remove bacterial contamination.

The medical oxygen generator leverages the next-gen PSA technology and avails the atmospheric air as raw material to convert oxygen into medical-grade oxygen. It comes with two adsorbers that are filled with zeolite molecular sieves which detect and absorb nitrogen from the air and allow oxygen to flow into the storage tank as the end product. To conserve purity and comply with the guidelines set by US Pharmacopeia, Indian Pharmacopeia, and UK Pharmacopeia, Absstem had installed an oxygen analyzer within the system that keeps a check on the quality of the oxygen. This continuous flow process is monitored by a specially devised microcontroller. In the entire operation, the air is permitted to pass through one of the adsorbers whilst the adsorber edges near the saturation point. Whereas, the other adsorber is employed to regenerate and maintain the continuous supply of medical oxygen.

Furnished with a user-friendly touch-screen interface, the MedO-eye displays operation parameters, and real-time oxygen purity. For data controlling and logging facilities, the equipment allows the tracing, displaying, and storing of oxygen purity data, running hours of air compressor, and filters which can further be availed for audits and certifications purposes. The buzzer installed in it beeps when the systems require maintenance. Its multistage filtration protects the molecular sieves from oil and dust particles while the additional filters drain moisture using an ADV (Automatic Drain Value).

The ergonomic design, robust steel structure, and advanced HMI not only makes it a competent oxygen producer but also show longevity in a dust-moisture-free environment. The oxygen concentrator skid system connects directly to the MGPS / Pipeline with the existing oxygen cylinder station acting as an emergency backup. The oxygen concentrator has various models with the oxygen flow capacity ranging from 100 LPM to 1400 LPM.

The installation cost of these oxygen concentrators is recovered within 12-15 months. The molecular sieves used in the system have a life of over 10 years and the maintenance cost is really low. The overall cost of medical oxygen comes down by around 70% as compared to oxygen cylinders.

Absstem technologies aim to remain ahead of the curve by supporting hospitals with products like MedO, Medical Oxygen High-Pressure Systems, and MOGPS- Medical Gas Pipeline System. It is high time to embrace these life-saving solutions to beat the struggle with the shortage of oxygen supply in hospitals and stay united to save lives.