To provide relief to the oxygen crunch that arose due to the second wave of COVID-19, a diving school operating under the Indian Navy has fabricated an Oxygen Recycling System (ORS).
The diving school is expected to be quite knowledgeable in designing similar systems as it forms the critical component of the diving sets used in the school. On March 6, during the Combined Commanders Conference in Kevadia, a similar concept for a miniaturized lab model was demonstrated to the Prime Minister.
As per the official release, the credit for designing the Oxygen Recycling System goes to Mayank Sharma, the Lieutenant Commander of the Diving school.
To take control and bring the system entirely under the hood of the Indian Navy, a patent has been filed by the Indian Navy, an application to which will come into effect from May 13.
The ORS is designed, according to the official release, to extend 2 to 4 times the life of the current medical oxygen cylinder, taking into account that only a small portion of the oxygen inhaled by the patient is absorbed into the lungs, the remaining finds its way into the environment along with carbon dioxide given out from the human body.
On April 22, the Southern Naval Command developed the first fully functional working model of the ORS. The prototype developed was subjected to a series of trials and design improvements, made under the observation of a third-party organization.
The device was then subjected to a thorough review and evaluation by a team of specialists at Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) in Thiruvananthapuram, following NITI Aayog's directives. The Oxygen Recycling System's definition and architecture were found to be feasible by SCTIMST's team of experts, who also suggested a few minor changes.
The ORS may also be used to prolong the life of oxygen cylinders used by mountaineers, soldiers at high altitudes for operations in the HADR, and onboard naval ships and submarines, in addition to substantively boosting existing oxygen capability in India.
Add comment