There are growing needs to produce relatively high purity(99.0% or higher) oxygen at low cost. For small scale production, both pressure swing adsorption(PSA) and membrane process are competitive and less expensive or more convenient than well known cryogenic fractionation technology. A continuous membrane column(CMC) combined with a PSA oxygen generator can be employed to produce high purity oxygen continuously. The oxygen enriched gas generated by a PSA unit, with a concentration of 93~94%, is fed to the CMC that consism of three modules of poly(imide) hollow fibers. Several experiments were conducted by varying parameters, such as feed flow rate, transmembrane pressure drop, stage cut, and feed location in order to obtain a high oxygen concentration above 99.0%. A two-series unit mode was also employed with CMC operation to optimize the given membrane area.

• Hwang Sun Tak(미국 오하이오주 신시내티 신시내티대학 화학공학과 OH 45221-0171) | 황선탁