Air separation stations should be located away from industrial waste gas emission sources, busy traffic areas, or other places that may cause pollution to avoid external impacts on air quality. Good ventilation conditions should be maintained around the equipment to avoid the accumulation of harmful gases or vapors.
The content of particulate matter (such as dust, sand, smoke, etc.) in the air should be as low as possible. Particulate matter may clog the filters, heat exchangers, or distillation columns of air separation equipment, affecting equipment performance and gas purity. The air should not contain oil mist, corrosive gases (such as sulfur dioxide, hydrogen chloride, etc.) or other harmful impurities that may corrode equipment or contaminate product gases. It is usually required that the air humidity be within a reasonable range, or that the humidity be reduced through pre-treatment systems such as dryers. The content of hydrocarbons in the air should be strictly controlled, as these substances may condense and accumulate in equipment at low temperatures, forming explosive mixtures. Excessive carbon dioxide content may lead to excessive carbon dioxide in the product gas, affecting gas purity.
Although oxygen in the air is the main raw material for air separation equipment, abnormal oxygen concentration may affect the operational safety of the equipment under certain special operating conditions (such as nitrogen production). The acetylene content in the air must be strictly controlled at an extremely low level to prevent the formation of explosive mixtures in the air separation equipment.
