PKU Pioneer Facilitates Steel Mill's Energy Efficiency Upgrade: 30,000Nm3/h PSA Oxygen Project Successfully Completed

Beijing, China--(Newsfile Corp. - December 1, 2025) - Half a year has passed since the upgraded PSA oxygen generation station of Zhuhai Yueyufeng Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Yueyufeng Steel") was officially put into operation. The optimized PSA oxygen generation plant has continuously provided stable oxygen supply for blast furnace oxygen enrichment, significantly boosting the steel mill's production efficiency.

In June 2025, the energy efficiency improvement and renovation project of Yueyufeng Steel's 30,000 Nm³/h (7,500×4 Nm³/h) PSA oxygen generation unit, undertaken by Beijing Peking University Pioneer Technology Corporation Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "PKU Pioneer"), was successfully completed. Through systematic technical optimization, the project successfully solved the problem of continuous performance degradation of the original unit. After the renovation, the unit's performance has fully exceeded the design indicators, and the power consumption for pure oxygen production has been significantly reduced, bringing substantial economic benefits to the client. Following the project's commissioning, Yueyufeng Steel specially expressed its gratitude to PKU Pioneer and highly recognized its technical strength and service quality.

Project Background: Operational Challenges Spur Renovation Needs

Yueyufeng Steel's four sets of 7,500 Nm³/h (80% purity) PSA oxygen generation system, put into operation in 2018, were supplied by an oxygen generation manufacturer with insufficient experience. Within 5 years of operation, a series of problems emerged, including frequent damage to the airbags inside the adsorption tower, a more than 30% drop in oxygen output, and a 20%-30% increase in power consumption. However, the root causes of these faults remained unidentified.

In January 2025, after multiple investigations, Yueyufeng Steel chose to cooperate with PKU Pioneer and took the lead in launching the renovation of Units 3 and 4. During the project implementation, technical experts from PKU Pioneer conducted in-depth on-site investigations and customized a phased renovation plan for the client. The renovation of the two units was completed within two months, and both units were successfully commissioned on the first attempt. Their performance indicators not only far exceeded the client's requirements but also surpassed the original design level of the units.

PKU Pioneer's technical team conducting on-site training and guidance

Due to the remarkable results of the two units' renovation, in April 2025, the two parties further signed a contract for the renovation of Units 1 and 2. To accelerate the renovation progress, PKU Pioneer's technical team stayed on-site for equipment commissioning and ensured performance compliance through real-time data monitoring. Finally, in June 2025, the full-system upgrade of the PSA oxygen generation station was realized, providing stable oxygen supply for blast furnace oxygen enrichment and meeting the client's production needs.

Yueyufeng Steel's plant site

Technological Breakthrough: In-depth Analysis Leads to Systematic Solutions

By conducting in-depth analysis of the operation data and process design of the original oxygen generation system, PKU Pioneer's technical team identified that the core problems stemmed from multiple technical defects. The superposition of various influencing factors led to the continuous decline of oxygen production indicators, increased energy consumption, and rising costs.

Firstly, the adsorption tower structure required modification. The original radial adsorption tower of the oxygen generation unit had design flaws in its sealing device. The renovation addressed the molecular sieve leakage issue inside the adsorption tower. For pressure swing adsorption (PSA) oxygen generation units, ensuring the long-term stability of adsorbents is the process foundation for achieving a service life of over 10 years.

Secondly, the performance indicators of adsorbents affect the overall performance of the unit. The adsorbents in the old unit exhibited varying degrees of pulverization and high wear rates. The renovation project adopted the high-efficiency lithium-based adsorbent PU-8, whose nitrogen-oxygen separation coefficient and strength are significantly higher than those of ordinary adsorbents. Combined with unique gas flow distribution technology, this extended the service life of the adsorbents and reduced bed resistance, thereby increasing oxygen output per unit time. After the renovation, the actual output of the oxygen generation unit increased by more than 10%, and the power consumption reduction exceeded the expected target by 20%.

Thirdly, key supporting equipment impacts the operational reliability of the unit. The valves of the old unit had problems such as incorrect selection, material defects, and component wear and deformation. In PSA oxygen generation working conditions, valves switch at a high frequency of once every 30 seconds on average, requiring significant improvements in durability and supporting upgrades. During the renovation, PKU Pioneer fully modified and replaced the problematic valves, equipping them with special valves suitable for PSA working conditions.

Finally, the unreasonable design of the intelligent control system affected performance optimization. The development of a streamlined, efficient, fully functional, and applicable PLC control program is an important technical guarantee for ensuring the safe, stable, and long-term reliable operation of PSA oxygen generation units. Based on the unit parameters, PKU Pioneer developed and optimized the program control logic, enabling rapid adaptive adjustment of the unit and energy efficiency optimization, ensuring that the oxygen generation unit always operates at a stable level with low energy consumption.

Project Insights: Technical Strength Builds Core Competitiveness

The successful commissioning of Yueyufeng Steel's four oxygen generation plants not only solved the oxygen supply problem for blast furnaces but also became another benchmark project of PKU Pioneer in the iron and steel industry. As a leading enterprise in pressure swing adsorption oxygen generation technology, PKU Pioneer is well aware of the decisive role of process details in unit performance: the optimized design of the adsorption tower structure, the precise control of molecular sieve filling, and the working condition adaptability of valve selection - these key technical details directly affect the energy efficiency and service life of the unit.

Relying on the scientific research advantages of Peking University, PKU Pioneer has continuously deepened basic research on pressure swing adsorption technology over the past 26 years. It has fully exerted its full-chain technical integration capabilities covering "design-manufacturing-operation and maintenance" and collaborated with leading enterprises in the iron and steel and chemical industries to conduct green gas technology research. The company is committed to building each engineering project into an industry model and promoting the high-quality development of the pressure swing adsorption industry.

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