Nitrogen generator.... Anyone used one?

[knighty]

New packing machine at work has a gas flushing option... We don't need it (frozen pet food)

But... I have a vague memory of watching si e videos about nitrogen generators... So had a quick look and there's some pretty cheap ones?

No idea if it's worth the bother... Or if the nitrogen generator parts have a useful life before they stop working? Some of the service kits look expensive so I'm wondering if the cheap generators aren't production anything anymore?

 

[Erie Fred]

You thinking of running a plasma cutter on Nitrogen or filling tires ?

 

[not done it yet]

Oxycons (oxygen generators) are common. Generally patients use them for breathing oxygen eith the nitrogen being removed and fed back to atmosphere. Nitrogen is pretty well pure (noble gases, etc goes with the oxygen).

Very simple operation - nitrogen is adsorbed/absorbed by a substrate, under pressure, and then released by relieving the pressure from the collection media.

My 5 lpm oxycon cost me less than £200 (some time ago). Nitrogen separated would be four times that amount, of course. They come up cheap after health-use is deemed over.

 

[Munkul]

Some laser cutting places have nitrogen generators. One I know have had one for around 10 years now.

 

[hotponyshoes]

Some pubs use them so they are often easy enough to find a good quality unit for not a lot of money. A ex-pub one would produce "food grade" gas as well.
Check the pressure you require though as some of the generators have a large, but relatively low pressure, storage tank.
Huge ones for breweries are available though!

I know some of the servicing costs can be expensive but I think that's mainly due to the manafactures suppling the equipment at a discount and then tying the pub into an expensive mantainance/service contract.
They are fairly simple so you could service it yourself if you can source the parts.

I know a few fairly switched-on landlords who have worked out that it's cheaper to buy bottled gas than run the generator.
The actual costs will depend on how much nitrogen you expect to use and if you have any fancy method of just running it during the day from solar power or something..

 

[addjunkie]

Ive used them on a large, very large scale. For purge systems, high volume relatively low pressure. Basically compressed air through membranes…..Membranes were a service item lasted about a year, but if spares were slow we did push them to two, but through put fell off. There was another type with two sets in parralel with a regeneration cycle.

Beware of the oxygen rich reject air.

 

[knighty]

new machine makes trays and seals them, a bit like you buy a tray of mince from asda, they're 1lb packs, about 120/hour, it'll flush them with nitrogen before it seals them.... meat is going in the freezer so the nitrogen isn't really needed... but if it's not going to cost much then may as well do it

no idea how much nitrogen is needed, I've emailed the manufacturers to check

guess I'd need clean stainless pressure vessels to store it... tho storage probably isn't going to do much when the machine runs all day

 

[Munkul]

food grade N2 still comes in carbon steel cylinders...

 

[hotponyshoes]

new machine makes trays and seals them, a bit like you buy a tray of mince from asda, they're 1lb packs, about 120/hour, it'll flush them with nitrogen before it seals them.... meat is going in the freezer so the nitrogen isn't really needed... but if it's not going to cost much then may as well do it

no idea how much nitrogen is needed, I've emailed the manufacturers to check

guess I'd need clean stainless pressure vessels to store it... tho storage probably isn't going to do much when the machine runs all day

The nitrogen is filled at atmospheric pressure so it's basically the volume of the packaging chamber each cycle.
Ie, the volume of the machines chamber not the product pack. (minus the impregnable stuff that you load into it)
That's presuming it's a vacuum type chamber dealing machine rather than some other system?

I've only ever seen nitrogen used for delicate stuff (crisps etc that will crush under vacuum packing ) and stuff with sharp edges (like rawhide chews that might pop a vacuum bag)
If you are just heatsealing lids onto level-filled trays and freezing them on site I can't see you would need it unless you want to increase storage life to the nth degree

 

[knighty]

it has vacuum option for vac packing the packs instead of trays/film lid, so I'm assuming it'll vac out the air, let the nitrogen in and then seal them

it's not really needed at all... but there's cheap looking nitrogen generators around and power use will be a tiny amount compared to our total load... so I figured might as well give it a go... (if it was expensive I'd have given it a miss)

 

[Munkul]

What's the benefit for you? Quality? or does it help your bottom line?

 

[knighty]

quality, it'll cost more to produce the nitrogen, it's fine without the nitrogen

but... for a small cost increase it's probably worth it.... reading online is pretty sparse, just wanted to make sure the filters in the nitrogen generators weren't an (expansive) service item