Storage and Delivery of Medical Gases
Nonflammable - answer Unable to support combustion
Oxidizing - answer Not flammable but supports combustion
Bourdon gauge - answer A fixed orifice comma variable pressure flow meter
Thorpe tube - answerA variable orifice, constant pressure flow meter
Reducing valve - answer A valve that reduces gas pressure
Regulator - answerA device that controls both pressure and Flow
Flow meter - answerA device operated by a needle valve that controls or measures gas
flow according to viscosity and density
Zone valve - answerOn and off piping valve that controls medical Gas Distribution to
pre-specified zones of the hospital
List three gases that are categorized as non flammable - answerNitrogen, helium, and
carbon dioxide
Most therapeutic gases will oxidize or support combustion. List three gases in this
category. - answerAir, oxygen, and nitric oxide
Describe the four basic steps of the fractional distillation process - answerAtmospheric
air is filtered to remove pollutants, water, and carbon dioxide.
Purified air is liquefied by compression and cooled by rapid expansion.
The remaining mixture of liquid oxygen and nitrogen is heated slowly in the distillation
tower and repeated twice. The remaining liquid oxygen is transferred to specifically
insulated cryogenic storage cylinders.
What Purity level is required for medical-grade oxygen? - answer99%
Describe the two methods used to separate oxygen from Air. What concentration is
produced by each method? - answerA. Inorganic sodium aluminum silicate pellets
absorb nitrogen and water vapor producing 90% oxygen.
B. Pulling of ambient air through a membrane and allows oxygen and water to pass at a
faster rate than nitrogen in ambient air.
What is the most common use of CO2 mixtures? - answerIt is used for the calibration of
blood gas analyzers and for Diagnostic purposes in Clinical Laboratory settings
, What is heliox? What is it used for in the clinical setting? - answerHeliox is a gas
mixture of oxygen and helium and may be used clinically to manage severe cases of
Airway obstruction. Example: life threatening asthma
What is the primary medical use for nitrous oxide? What are some of the hazards of
nitrous oxide Administration? - answerNitrous oxide is clinically used as an anesthetic
agent. Hazards consist of the president of the central nervous system, increased risk for
fetal disorders, and spontaneous abortion.
Describe two possible hazards for using nitric oxide - answerA. Exposure to high
concentration of NO can cause methmoglobinemia which could lead to tissue hypoxia
B. Use of inhaled NO in treatment of premature neonates with hypoxic respiratory
failure does not improve outcomes and may increase the risk for intracranial
hemorrhage
Give the chemical symbol for each of the following medical gases - answerOxygen- O2
Air- AIR
Carbon Dioxide- CO2
Helium- He
Nitrous Oxide- N2O
Nitric Oxide- NO
What do the symbols * and + mean when stamped on a cylinder - answer* next to the
test date indicates DOT approval for 10-year testing
+ indicates the cylinder is approved for filling up to 10% greater than its service pressure
Identify the proper color for these gas cylinders - answerOxygen - green
Carbon dioxide - gray
Nitrous Oxide - blue
Helium - brown
Nitrogen - black
Air - yellow
Because cylinder color is only a guideline, how do you actually determine which gas is
in a cylinder? - answerContents must be identified through careful inspection of the
label and analyzing the gas.
List two gases that can be stored in the liquid state at room temperature -
answerCarbon dioxide and nitrous oxide
Explain why the pressure in a gas-filled cylinder is different from that of a liquid-filled
cylinder - answerPressure in a cylinder depends on its contents. In a gas-filled cylinder,
the pressure represents the force required to compress the gas into its smaller volume
Nonflammable - answer Unable to support combustion
Oxidizing - answer Not flammable but supports combustion
Bourdon gauge - answer A fixed orifice comma variable pressure flow meter
Thorpe tube - answerA variable orifice, constant pressure flow meter
Reducing valve - answer A valve that reduces gas pressure
Regulator - answerA device that controls both pressure and Flow
Flow meter - answerA device operated by a needle valve that controls or measures gas
flow according to viscosity and density
Zone valve - answerOn and off piping valve that controls medical Gas Distribution to
pre-specified zones of the hospital
List three gases that are categorized as non flammable - answerNitrogen, helium, and
carbon dioxide
Most therapeutic gases will oxidize or support combustion. List three gases in this
category. - answerAir, oxygen, and nitric oxide
Describe the four basic steps of the fractional distillation process - answerAtmospheric
air is filtered to remove pollutants, water, and carbon dioxide.
Purified air is liquefied by compression and cooled by rapid expansion.
The remaining mixture of liquid oxygen and nitrogen is heated slowly in the distillation
tower and repeated twice. The remaining liquid oxygen is transferred to specifically
insulated cryogenic storage cylinders.
What Purity level is required for medical-grade oxygen? - answer99%
Describe the two methods used to separate oxygen from Air. What concentration is
produced by each method? - answerA. Inorganic sodium aluminum silicate pellets
absorb nitrogen and water vapor producing 90% oxygen.
B. Pulling of ambient air through a membrane and allows oxygen and water to pass at a
faster rate than nitrogen in ambient air.
What is the most common use of CO2 mixtures? - answerIt is used for the calibration of
blood gas analyzers and for Diagnostic purposes in Clinical Laboratory settings
, What is heliox? What is it used for in the clinical setting? - answerHeliox is a gas
mixture of oxygen and helium and may be used clinically to manage severe cases of
Airway obstruction. Example: life threatening asthma
What is the primary medical use for nitrous oxide? What are some of the hazards of
nitrous oxide Administration? - answerNitrous oxide is clinically used as an anesthetic
agent. Hazards consist of the president of the central nervous system, increased risk for
fetal disorders, and spontaneous abortion.
Describe two possible hazards for using nitric oxide - answerA. Exposure to high
concentration of NO can cause methmoglobinemia which could lead to tissue hypoxia
B. Use of inhaled NO in treatment of premature neonates with hypoxic respiratory
failure does not improve outcomes and may increase the risk for intracranial
hemorrhage
Give the chemical symbol for each of the following medical gases - answerOxygen- O2
Air- AIR
Carbon Dioxide- CO2
Helium- He
Nitrous Oxide- N2O
Nitric Oxide- NO
What do the symbols * and + mean when stamped on a cylinder - answer* next to the
test date indicates DOT approval for 10-year testing
+ indicates the cylinder is approved for filling up to 10% greater than its service pressure
Identify the proper color for these gas cylinders - answerOxygen - green
Carbon dioxide - gray
Nitrous Oxide - blue
Helium - brown
Nitrogen - black
Air - yellow
Because cylinder color is only a guideline, how do you actually determine which gas is
in a cylinder? - answerContents must be identified through careful inspection of the
label and analyzing the gas.
List two gases that can be stored in the liquid state at room temperature -
answerCarbon dioxide and nitrous oxide
Explain why the pressure in a gas-filled cylinder is different from that of a liquid-filled
cylinder - answerPressure in a cylinder depends on its contents. In a gas-filled cylinder,
the pressure represents the force required to compress the gas into its smaller volume
