The pandemic of infectious diseases has greatly increased the demand for oxygen supply. Hong Kong is trying to increase the oxygen supply of the medical system to meet the huge demand. The situation reminds me of the "wrong gas" incident in Hong Kong in the early years. Public hospitals used to install oxygen machines in their own hospitals Supply what is needed in the hospital.
Back then, the hospital successfully produced oxygen by using the "molecular sieve adsorption method". Unexpectedly, after many years, this filtration method can not only continue to be used to increase the supply of medical oxygen, but also a Hong Kong start-up company is researching to remove volatile substances that have long been difficult to deal with in the air. It is a non-toxic substance and has a very high potential to become a "good helper" for removing formaldehyde, for example.
Written by: Yuan Pak-leung, a senior engineer and former president of the Institution of Engineers
The author mentioned above that in the early days of the new crown epidemic, the oxygen supply in Hong Kong was almost tense. Therefore, in addition to increasing the general oxygen supply, the hospital also added portable oxygen machines.
The instrument can suck in air, absorb and discharge the nitrogen in the air through the molecular sieve material in the machine, leaving only oxygen for the patient to use.
The author can't help but think of the "wrong gas" incident that occurred in public hospitals in the old days. In the 1990s, a patient in a private hospital died due to wrong gas delivery. At that time, the government conducted a comprehensive review of the medical gas delivery system. In the end, the authorities decided to avoid confusion between different gases. Fully introduce the pin positioning air valve device, and use different shapes of pinholes to reduce the chance of error.
In addition, some hospitals tried to produce oxygen centrally in the hospital themselves, instead of supplying oxygen from an oxygen company. The hospital set up its own equipment and facilities to remove nitrogen in the air through molecular sieve adsorption technology, so that the remaining air contains high-concentration oxygen for supply. For therapeutic use in hospitals.
However, today, this molecular filtration technology is not only used to supply or produce oxygen, some start-up companies use this technology to remove volatile organic compounds (commonly known as VOC) in the air, such as formaldehyde and other substances.
Formaldehyde is a colorless gas with a pungent smell. As long as there is a small amount in the air, it can make people smell bad, and it can also irritate the eyes and throat. If the concentration is high, it can cause nausea, vomiting, coughing, chest tightness, shortness of breath, and even Symptoms such as emphysema.
At the same time, the World Health Organization and the International Agency for Research on Cancer have listed formaldehyde as a "known human carcinogen" category 1 carcinogen.
If the human body takes formaldehyde for a long time, it may lead to sinus cancer and nasopharyngeal cancer. Some studies have even pointed out that formaldehyde may increase the risk of leukemia or blood cancer.
These substances generally exist indoors. If a home has just been renovated, formaldehyde will exist in the paint and adhesives of new furniture, which will emit a pungent smell.
It has been reported that some clothing, cosmetics and "black heart food" may also contain excessive formaldehyde, so formaldehyde is characterized as a common indoor air pollutant.
In the past, most people used activated carbon to absorb formaldehyde, through the tiny pores contained in activated carbon, to achieve the effect of absorbing formaldehyde, but its performance is easily affected by indoor humidity changes and sunlight.
Therefore, the activated carbon must be replaced regularly during use in order to maintain the local adsorption effect.
Faced with this problem, a local young university graduate student jointly established a start-up company to use molecular sieve filtration technology as a nano-adsorbent to remove volatile organic substances. The cumulative purification amount is good, which helps to reduce harmful components in the air.
It is known that such products for removing volatile organic substances such as formaldehyde have already appeared in the market, including air purifiers with a combination of multiple purification methods.
If this method of removing formaldehyde can be widely recognized and applied, it will help many users or families affected by such irritants and reduce the impact on their health. It is expected that there will be more choices of formaldehyde removal purifiers in the future .
"01 Medical Clinic" cooperates with senior engineer Yuan Bailiang to launch a column "Yuantu You You" every Monday to share engineering and medical issues.
Yuan Bailiang has always been committed to promoting the professional development of the engineering industry. He is the former president of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers.
Decades of professional journey are really worth remembering, and I firmly believe that latecomers may understand the key points of engineering majors.
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