Abstract: An improved process is provided for the production of anhydrides from hydrocarbons by reaction with an oxygen-containing gas comprising oxygen, air or a gas enriched in oxygen relative to air, in the presence of a suitable catalyst. In the process, a selective separator provides recycle of a substantial portion of the unreacted hydrocarbon as well as for a controlled amount of a gaseous flame suppressor in the system. The gaseous flame suppressor comprises a substantially unreactive hydrocarbon containing 1 to 5 carbon atoms, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen when present in the feed to the oxidation reactor. The use of air or oxygen-enriched air in the feed to the oxidation reactor is particularly advantageous from an economic view in combination with a pressure swing adsorption unit as the selective separator. The process is characterized by high selectively to the formation of the anhydride product.

Abstract: A water separator is disclosed and which is specially suited for withdrawing dry gas from liquid/gas from a patient's exhalation for analysis thereof. The separator utilizes a conduit constructed of a gas permeable material, preferably expanded polytetrafluoroethylene, surrounded by a cylindrical, annular chamber. As the liquid/gas flows through the conduit at a predetermined flow, a negative pressure differential is created between the annular chamber and the conduit to draw the dry gas through the gas permeable material. The conduit is subject to radial expansion upon the patient's exhalation and the annular chamber has a predetermined minimum diameter that is sufficient to allow the conduit to expand without contact between the conduit and an inner surface forming the chamber. The minimum diameter also minimizes the volume of the annular chamber to resist the formation of dead air spaces in the annular chamber.

Abstract: A refrigerated container 2 has associated therewith a compressor 6 which receives filtered air and passes it to a small apparatus 12 for separating air by pressure swing adsorption or by different rates of permeation of gas through semi-permeable membranes. Resulting air depleted in oxygen and water vapor flows into the interior of the container 2 and displaces atmosphere from the container 2 through a vent tube 20. Reducing the oxygen and water vapor content of the atmosphere in the container 2 (which may be a refrigerator or freezer) helps to preserve food stored therein and reduces the deposition of water or ice.

Abstract: Liquid carbon dioxide substantially free of particles is prepared by evaporating liquid carbon dioxide, passing the resulting gaseous carbon dioxide through a suitable filter to remove particles therefrom and cooling the particle-free gas to reliquefy it.

Abstract: A process for producing substantially pure liquid carbon dioxide from a carbon dioxide feed containing about 35 to about 98% by volume of carbon dioxide wherein a waste stream containing carbon dioxide is separated from contaminants in a pressure swing adsorption apparatus and then recycled to the carbon dioxide feed, and a system for recovering spent carbon dioxide from a refrigeration system using liquid carbon dioxide as a freezing agent.

Abstract: The present invention provides a diaphragm valve including a housing having a chamber and an outlet opening within the chamber. A projecting valve seat, formed by a projection extending into the chamber, has a sloping, annular sealing surface surrounding the outlet opening. A valve body, preferably forming an armature of an electromagnetic coil, is also located within the chamber. The valve body has, at one end, a recess and a metal diaphragm covering the recess and chemically non-reactive with a flowing fluid passing through the chamber and out of the outlet opening. The valve body is adapted for movement towards and away from the valve seat between closed and open positions. In the closed position the diaphragm is flexed into the recess by the projection, conformingly and sealingly contacting the sealing surface and covering the outlet opening, to prevent the passage of flowing fluid.

Abstract: Process for the recovery of nitrogen from air in which gaseous air is compressed, cooled and optionally purified in a heat exchanger, and then distilled to obtain pure gaseous nitrogen overhead and an oxygen enriched liquid bottoms, wherein all of the bottoms and a portion of the overhead is passed to a condenser to form an oxygen enriched gas and liquid nitrogen and wherein at least a portion of the oxygen enriched gas is compressed and recycled to the distillation column to enhance recovery of the nitrogen product.

Abstract: A five-layer coating, commonly called a "stack", for glass windows in order to control the proportion of solar radiation permitted to pass through the window, the remainder being reflected by the coating, while maintaining a desired visible light characteristic transmission. Particularly, the technique is applied to vehicle glass windows, such as truck and automobile windshields, where the amount of solar radiation allowed to pass into the vehicle through the window is minimized within the constraints of maintaining visible light transmission above a certain legal level. The characteristics of the coating are also selected for visible light reflected from the window to the outside to be a substantially neutral color, highly desirable for the overall appearance of trucks and automobiles.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for cryogenic air separation wherein both fuel gas and electrical power are produced. Respective operating pressures of the lower and higher pressure rectification columns can be set independently of one another, allowing flexibility in selecting the purity of the oxygen product.

Abstract: Apparatus for removing small particles from a substrate including superimposed plates forming at least two parallel chambers and a film-like member interposed between the plates and adapted to provide flow communication between the chambers to enable fluid carbon dioxide to form a mixture of solid particles and gaseous carbon dioxide which flows out of an ejection port toward the substrate.

Abstract: Highly purified gaseous hydrogen and liquid carbon dioxide are produced from a steam reformer/shift converter by passing the effluent from the latter through a multibed hydrogen PSA unit followed by an uncoupled carbon dioxide PSA unit. The carbon dioxide PSA unit produces a hydrogen-rich stream which is recycled to the feed to the steam reformer, a carbon dioxide-rich recycle stream which is recycled to the carbon dioxide PSA unit feed and a carbon dioxide-rich product stream which is introduced under pressure to a liquifier. A waste stream from the liquifier is recylced to the carbon dioxide PSA unit feed. A portion of the carbon dioxide-rich product stream is withdrawn from the compressor at a stage such that its pressure is higher than that of the carbon dioxide PSA unit and returned thereto as a cocurrent purge preceding bed regeneration to obtain product.

Abstract: A process for producing substantially pure liquid carbon dioxide from a carbon dioxide feed containing about 35 to about 98% by volume of carbon dioxide wherein a waste stream containing carbon dioxide is separated from contaminants in a pressure swing adsorption apparatus and then recycled to the carbon dioxide feed, and a system for recovering spent carbon dioxide from a refrigeration system using liquid carbon dioxide as a freezing agent.

Abstract: An improved process is provided for the production of nitriles and oxides from hydrocarbons by reaction with oxygen, air or a gas enriched in oxygen relative to air, preferably the latter, and ammonia where a nitrile is desired, in the presence of a suitable catalyst. An alkane, e.g. propane, is converted to an alkene in a catalytic dehydrogenator. The product stream is introduced into an ammoxidation reactor. The product formed therein is recovered in a conventional quench tower. The pressure of the gaseous effluent from the quench tower is raised and it is introduced into an absorber/stripper unit to form a recycle stream containing unreacted alkane and alkene as well as a minor amount of oxygen, typically 1-2 percent by volume, and a waste stream comprising the remainder of the quench tower gaseous phase. The recycle stream is introduced into a selective oxidation unit to remove the oxygen therefrom and then recycled to the dehydrogenator.

Abstract: An infant incubator is disclosed having a hood that encloses the infant compartment. In the base of the incubator is the heating air and ducting means and which provides heated through an ever open outlet in the base and which heated air passes from the base through a flow path formed by the hood that circulates around the infant and re-enters the base through an inlet. That heated air is thus introduced into or along the access door in the front of the hood from the outlet and travels through or along the access door and through or along the hood around the infant and is returned to the base for recirculation. The hood itself is pivotally attached to the base at the rear of the incubator so that it can be opened from the front for complete access to the infant. The access door in the front of the hood is pivotally attached to the incubator base and can also be opened for access to the infant. When the access door is in its closed position, it forms part of the air path for the heated air.

Abstract: The improvement in the separation of gaseous mixtures by pressure swing adsorption (PSA) is disclosed. The interparticle voids in kinetically-selective PSA adsorbent beds are filled with fine particles of kinetically-selective adsorbent. The ratio of the average diameter of the coarse adsorbent particles to the average diameter of the fine particles, the size of the fine particles themselves and the percent of volume of the fine particles in the bed are all critical to optimum PSA performance.

Abstract: A gas-injection lance, burner, and method for use in a high temperature heating system which provides a non-axisymmetric flow of a reaction-rate enhancing gas in sufficient proximity to the flame of the system, which extends over the surface to be heated, to create an aerodynamically reduced pressure field sufficient to deform the flame and displace it in the direction of the surface to be heated. The present method provides substantially enhanced heating with the virtual elimination of hot spots.

Abstract: The molecular concentration of a constituent such as oxygen of an anesthetic agent in a gas is measured by contacting the gas with the surface of a solid body, momentarily heating the surface so that the constituent reacts at the surface to alter a property of the surface such as reflectivity, and determining the degree or rate of alteration occasioned by the heating step. The momentary heating operation may be performed by light from a laser focused on to a small localized region. The body surface can include a thin film of a material such as a metal reactive with the gas constituent of interest at elevated temperatures. The preferred methods provide extraordinarily rapid response, and also form a permanent record of each measurement. Where the gas is at substantially constant pressure, the measured molecular concentration can be interpreted as an indication of the proportion of the constituent in the gas.

Abstract: A packing for a liquid-vapor contact column is provided which comprises metallic sheets defining liquid-vapor passages and having at least one wettable surface comprised of a coating of porous metal. The sheets are perforated to permit vapor to pass between them. The porous metal coating is formed by spraying a particulate mixture of metal and a plastics material onto the sheet to form a coating of plastics particles embedded in metal and then heating to volatilize the plastic thereby forming porosity in the metal coating.

Abstract: In an oil free mechanical pump of the type in which two shafts support at least one pair of intermeshing rotors for rotation in opposite angular directions, a flexible drive means in the form of the belt or chain is provided for engaging pulleys or sprockets on the shafts.

Abstract: A process for the separation of air to obtain oxygen, nitrogen and argon is disclosed which comprises: subjecting air from which carbon dioxide and water have been removed to fractional distillation in a first column to form oxygen-nitrogen vapor and argon-enriched oxygen; separating argon from the latter in a second column operating at substantially lower pressure than the first; liquefying a portion of the nitrogen vapor in a cycle including heat exchange with incoming air and compression to a pressure above that of the first column, a portion of the liquid nitrogen being taken as product and a second portion being returned to the first column as reflux. Liquid-oxygen and nitrogen vapor from the first column are mixed in a liquid-vapor contact column, impure liquid nitrogen is withdrawn therefrom and used as reflux in the first column. A remixed oxygen-nitrogen stream is withdrawn from the contact column and expanded to create refrigeration for the system.