Instructions Purging High Purity Delivery Systems

PURGING HIGH PURITY
GAS DELIVERY SYSTEMS
Instructions
READ AND COMPLY WITH THESE INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE

INSTALLING, OPERATING, OR SERVICING
INT-0258 Rev C
INTRODUCTION
It is important to remove room air from all portions of a high purity gas piping system
prior to process gas introduction. There are two reasons why this is required:
1. Any residual air reduces process gas purity. This is true for any process gas,
whether hazardous or not.
2. Air contains oxygen and water vapor; some specialty gases react with oxygen,
and the resulting reaction products can cause process contamination and manifold
component failure. Other gases form highly corrosive products upon contact
with water vapor, causing damage to the piping system. Equipment corrosion
can also contaminate the process.
It is also necessary to remove process gas from any portion of the piping system before
exposure to atmosphere, such as when changing gas cylinders or performing maintenance
on the system. There are three reasons for this:
1. Many specialty gases are highly toxic and would present a severe health hazard to
personnel.
2. Some gases are highly flammable or even pyrophoric and would pose the hazard
of fire or explosion.
3. Other gases become highly corrosive on contact with water vapor present in air
and could damage equipment and facilities.
METHODOLOGY
Removal of the undesired gas, either air or process gas, is known as purging. Purging is
accomplished by either evacuation of the undesired gas or replacement with a high
purity inert gas, or by a combination of both methods.
Evacuation is the removal of all gases from the piping system by pulling a high vacuum
on the system. While this might appear to be the simpler of the two methods, it has four
drawbacks:
1. It is impossible to attain a perfect vacuum, so that some of the gas will remain
in the system.
2. A substantial amount of time is required to reach even a moderate vacuum in
all portions of the system.
3. Due to line conductance, it is difficult to remove the gas from portions of the
system furthest from the vacuum pump.
4. High vacuum pumps are expensive and exposure to process gas may result in
high maintenance costs.
For these reasons, evacuation is normally used only in conjunction with replacement.
The most commonly employed method of purging is replacement of the undesired gas
with a high purity inert gas (the purge gas) which does not react with either air or the
process gas, nor pose any other of the previously mentioned hazards. Nitrogen is the
most common purge gas, but argon and some others are used in certain applications.
Replacement is accomplished by either displacement or dilution.
Displacement is the replacement of the undesired gas by a purge gas without intermixing
of the two. In theory, displacement would be a simple, rapid means of purging, but in
practice it is impossible to introduce a gas into a piping system without intermixing with
the gas already in the system.
Dilution is the reduction in concentration of an undesired gas by the addition of purge

gas. The amount of the undesired gas does not change, but as more of the purge gas is
added, the concentration of the undesired gas (percentage of the total amount of gas
present) decreases.
Displacement and dilution are somewhat idealized concepts; practical purging methods
generally employ a combination of the two. Two methods are commonly employed:
continuous flow purging and cycle purging.
Continuous flow purging is the continuous introduction of purge gas at one end of a
piping system, with continuous removal of a mixture of the two gases from the far end of
the piping system. In simple systems, such as tubing runs, the displacement effect is
considerable, with much of the undesired gas rapidly driven out at the exit end of the
tubing.
In complex system containing branches and dead end cavities (typical of many delivery
systems), the situation is considerably different. There is little or no displacement of gas
in the branches and dead end cavities, and the dilution of gas in these portions of the
system is a very slow process. For this reason, continuous flow purging is not a very
effective purging method for most high purity gas delivery systems.
Cycle purging is the alternate introduction of purge gas into a system (pressurization) and
release of the mixture of purge gas and the undesired gas from the system (venting).
Dilution is achieved by the introduction of purge gas and the amount of undesired gas is
reduced by venting the mixture, leaving a lesser amount of the dilute mixture in the
system. This process is repeated, with increasing dilution after each
pressurization/venting cycle.
In theory, the concentration of undesired gas after one cycle is:
C1 = C0 ( Pv / Pi )
After n cycles, the theoretical concentration is
Cn = C0 ( Pv / Pi )n
Where:
C0 = initial concentration of the undesired gas (usually assumed to be 1.0, or 100%)
C1 = concentration after one cycle
Cn = concentration after n cycles
n = number of cycles
Pi = absolute purge gas inlet pressure
Pv = absolute pressure to which the system is vented
When the venting pressure (Pv) is less than atmospheric pressure (14.7 psia at sea level),
the procedure is referred to as Vacuum Assisted Cycle Purging.
The above equation is useful as a qualitative guide. Purging efficiency is increased by

increasing the purge gas inlet pressure, reducing the venting pressure, and/or increasing
the number of cycles. Performance can be further improved by proper system design,
such as minimizing branches and dead end cavities.
NOTES:
NOTES:
NOTES:
166 Keystone Drive
Montgomeryville, PA 18936
800-828-4313
www.mathesongas.com
INT-0258 rev C
Copyright 2021 Matheson Tri-Gas, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
All contents of this document are subject to change without notice and do not represent a commitment on the part of Matheson Tri-
Gas, Inc. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of this information. However, due to differences in actual and ongoing
operational processes and product improvements and revisions, Matheson Tri-Gas, Inc. cannot guarantee the accuracy of this material,
nor can it accept responsibility for errors or omissions. This document is intended to serve as a general orientation and cannot be relied
upon for a specific operation. No warranties of any nature are extended by the information contained in these copyrighted materials.
All names, products, and services mentioned herein are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective organizations and
are the sole property of their respective owners. Matheson and the Matheson logo are registered trademarks of Matheson Tri-Gas, Inc.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF SALE

https://shop.mathesongas.com/terms-and-conditions

Instructions Purging High Purity Delivery Systems

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Instructions Purging High Purity Delivery Systems

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Instructions Purging High Purity Delivery Systems

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

PURGING HIGH PURITY

GAS DELIVERY SYSTEMS

READ AND COMPLY WITH THESE INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE

Replacement is accomplished by either displacement or dilution.

Dilution is the reduction in concentration of an undesired gas by the addition of purge

In theory, the concentration of undesired gas after one cycle is:

After n cycles, the theoretical concentration is

The above equation is useful as a qualitative guide. Purging efficiency is increased by

Copyright 2021 Matheson Tri-Gas, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF SALE

You might also like