compared to a tank of oxygen for a patient to breathe.
I don’t know how to frame the question properly, but I’m wondering, over a given time period, how much O2 would I inhale from a run of the mill concentrator, compared to what I’d get from an O2 tank.
The ones I’ve had experience with generate around 90% oxygen. It depends on how many liters/min they’re asked to pump out, and what their capacity is. I’ve seen bigger ones handle small amounts like 1-2L/min at 95%, and concentration degrading the more capacity is asked of it.
My grandmother had a 5L/min machine that operated at 1, 1.5, and 2 (depending on how much she needed it) for 2 years, very dependably.
The ones I’ve used in the veterinary industry have also been very dependable.
I should have mentioned I do 2 Liters/min.
So, does a tank deliver close to 100% oxygen?
I used to work as a biomedical technician, and the best you can really hope to get is 95%. It has to do with the material used to “concentrate” the oxygen. In a nutshell, the concentrator is full of a material that absorbs nitrogen. Even if you could remove all of the nitrogen from the air, you would still have over 1% of “other stuff” (mostly Argon, and some CO2.) However, the other 4% is still nitrogen, but that last 4% is much harder to remove that the previous ~66%, due to “diminishing returns,” and all that.
Thanks one and all.