An Oxygen Re-Breather System

When transport aircraft must operate unpressurized at higher altitudes, the crewmember is required to carry a portable oxygen supply system to move around the cabin. Current low pressure oxygen bottles do not provide enough emergency oxygen for aircrews to perform duties in the cabin/cargo area until the aircraft can attain a safe level where supplemental oxygen is not required. A re-breather technology can extend the duration of the oxygen supply without resorting to larger storage bottles or higher pressure O2 tanks by recycling oxygen in a closed-loop manner. However, it is essential to prevent the carbon dioxide (CO2) accumulation in these systems. TDA Research, Inc. (TDA) proposes to develop a high capacity, durable CO2 sorbent as a key component of a lightweight, portable O2 re-breather system to support high altitude operations. In Phase I, we will develop the sorbent and carry out an overall system design.