Oxygen Booster Compressor 0.1 MPa to 32 MPa · 0.7 to 150 m³/min
Oil-free reciprocating compressors for PSA oxygen plants, cylinder filling stations, steel mills and industrial gas systems. Built to API 618. Customised to your inlet conditions.
Our Oxygen Compressor Series
Reciprocating oxygen compressors for every pressure requirement — from low-pressure air separation output to high-pressure cylinder filling. All series share an oil-free compression platform and are sized to your specific inlet conditions.
Oil-free reciprocating compressors for boosting PSA or vaporised liquid oxygen to cylinder filling pressure. Multi-stage compression with inter-cooling for low discharge temperature. Noise level below 75 dB. Annual grease application only — no oil changes, no oil filters.
For steel mills, glass furnaces and large-scale chemical oxygen pipelines. Three-stage and four-stage configurations covering 55 kW to 1,200 kW. Designed for continuous 24-hour operation with low-speed drive for extended overhaul intervals.
Suited for laser cutting oxygen supply, glass oxy-fuel combustion, wastewater oxygenation and PSA distribution pipelines requiring 10–25 bar delivery pressure. Two-stage compression. Compact footprint for in-plant installation.
Primary-stage compressors for air separation unit oxygen output and PSA plant distribution at 2–8 bar. Single-stage and two-stage configurations. Power range 11 kW to 1,200 kW, covering the widest flow range in our portfolio.
Engineering-grade boosters for large air separation units and EPC projects. Skid-mounted packages available. API 618 compliant. Custom inlet pressure accepted — including boosting from an already pressurised oxygen line at 0.17 MPa or higher.
Same engineering platform as our oxygen cylinder filling series. Available for nitrogen (N₂) and hydrogen (H₂) cylinder filling to 150 bar or 165 bar. Oil-free lubrication throughout. No oil contamination risk for gas purity-critical applications.
Find Your Compressor
Select your gas, application and required flow rate. Our selection logic will identify the right product category and model range for your specification.
Trusted Across Six Key Sectors
Oxygen compression requirements differ significantly between industries. Every application has distinct inlet conditions, required outlet pressure and duty-cycle demands. Explore the full application guide to see how our compressors are specified for your sector.
PSA oxygen generators typically output at 4–6 bar. Our oil-free booster compressors raise this to 150–165 bar for cylinder filling, ensuring compliant medical gas supply to hospitals and healthcare facilities.
Converter steelmaking, blast furnace oxygen enrichment and metal heat treatment demand reliable high-pressure oxygen at 30–35 bar and flow rates up to 100 m³/min. DW and 4MW series handle the largest industrial loads.
Oxy-fuel combustion in glass furnaces improves flame temperature, reduces fuel consumption by up to 30%, and cuts NOx emissions. Medium-pressure oxygen supply at 10–16 bar on a continuous-duty cycle.
Gas distributors and filling stations require consistent high-pressure output to fill oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen cylinders efficiently and safely around the clock. Low maintenance overhead is critical for profitability.
High-density recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) depend on a continuous, reliable oxygen supply. On-site PSA generation paired with our low-pressure boosters eliminates cylinder delivery dependency.
Oxidation reactors, partial oxidation units and waste gas treatment processes require stable medium- to high-pressure oxygen at custom flow rates. API 618 designs available for hazardous area installation.
Why Oil-Free Reciprocating Technology
Technical advantages that matter for oxygen applications — where lubricant contamination is not an inconvenience, it is a safety hazard. Explore the full technical background on our company and manufacturing page.
Cylinder bores are oil-free throughout the compression process. Only one grease application per year is required on external bearing points. Output oxygen meets ISO 8573-1 purity requirements for medical and industrial applications — no downstream oil coalescer required.
Average operating speed 260–350 RPM — significantly lower than oil-injected screw compressors running at 3,000+ RPM. Reduced mechanical wear extends mean time between overhauls to 25,000+ running hours on ZW, LW and DW series. Fewer unplanned shutdowns, lower lifetime maintenance cost.
Two-stage to five-stage configurations cover outlet pressures from 0.20 MPa (low-pressure supply) to 32 MPa (high-pressure cylinder filling), all within a single product platform. No need to source from multiple suppliers for different pressure requirements across your facility.
Every unit is fitted with inlet low-pressure shutdown, outlet over-pressure relief valve, inter-stage temperature alarm and automatic stop. Designed for 24-hour continuous unattended operation with PLC control and remote monitoring capability available on request.
Manufacturing Capability & Certifications
Backed by decades of industrial gas compressor manufacturing, operating a fully equipped production facility with in-house casting, machining and pressure testing. Every unit undergoes hydrostatic pressure test and performance verification before shipment.
System Certification
for Gas Industry Services
for Export Markets
Association Member
Oxygen Booster Compressors: A Specification Guide
What engineers and procurement managers need to know before specifying an oxygen booster compressor — from technology selection to pressure-stage configuration.
What Is an Oxygen Booster Compressor?
An oxygen booster compressor is a reciprocating machine that raises the pressure of an oxygen stream from a lower inlet pressure to a higher outlet pressure required by the downstream process or storage system. The term "booster" distinguishes it from a primary compression machine: the gas source — typically a PSA oxygen generator, a vacuum pressure swing adsorption (VPSA) unit, or a liquid oxygen vaporiser — has already done the initial pressure work. The booster takes that gas and raises it further.
The most common booster applications are oxygen cylinder filling stations, where a pressure increase from approximately 0.1–0.5 MPa (PSA output) up to 15.0–16.5 MPa (cylinder pressure) is required; steelmaking oxygen pipelines, where 3.0–3.5 MPa is the typical working pressure; and oxy-fuel combustion systems for glass furnaces, where 1.0–1.6 MPa is the norm.
Why the Compressor Must Be Oil-Free
Compressed oxygen reacts with hydrocarbon lubricants with extreme vigour. At elevated pressures and temperatures present inside a compression cylinder, even small amounts of mineral oil can ignite spontaneously in an oxygen atmosphere. This makes oil-free compression not an environmental preference but an engineering safety requirement. A compressor described as "oil-injected with downstream filtration" does not meet this requirement: no filtration system is 100% reliable, and the risk cannot be eliminated by a filter alone.
Oil-free reciprocating compressors eliminate lubricant from the compression zone entirely. The pistons run on PTFE-compound rider rings, and the cylinder walls require no lubrication. Only external bearing points are greased, typically once per year. The output gas meets ISO 8573-1 Class 0 oil content requirements without any additional treatment.
Reciprocating vs. Screw Technology for Oxygen Boosting
Oil-free screw compressors can deliver oil-free output, but they operate at very high rotor speeds (6,000–25,000 RPM depending on stage) and require precision timing gears and multiple shaft seals. Compression chamber temperature reaches 200°C or higher. These characteristics make screw technology difficult to apply safely in high-pressure oxygen service above approximately 1.0 MPa.
Reciprocating compressors, by contrast, operate at 260–350 RPM in our design. Lower rotational speed means lower adiabatic heating per stroke, lower inter-stage temperatures (achievable to within 15°C above ambient with water cooling), and far fewer dynamic seals. This is why API 618 — the international standard for process gas reciprocating compressors — is the design reference for high-pressure oxygen service, not the equivalent screw compressor standard.
Pressure Stage Configuration
The number of compression stages needed depends entirely on the inlet-to-outlet pressure ratio. A general rule of thumb in reciprocating compressor engineering is that each stage should not exceed a compression ratio of approximately 3.5–4:1 (the exact limit depends on gas properties, temperature limits and rod load constraints). For oxygen, which has a ratio of specific heats (gamma) of approximately 1.4, this translates to a per-stage temperature rise that must be kept below approximately 160°C in normal industrial service.
- 2-stage: suitable for compression from atmospheric to approximately 0.8–1.0 MPa (low-pressure service, air separation output, PSA pipeline distribution)
- 3-stage: covers inlet atmospheric to 3.0–3.5 MPa (high-pressure industrial pipeline, steel mill oxygen supply)
- 4-stage: covers atmospheric or low-pressure inlet to 15.0 MPa (cylinder filling at 150 bar, large-capacity industrial models)
- 5-stage: used on smaller-capacity cylinder filling machines (ZW series) where rod load constraints require an additional stage to keep each stage's mechanical loading within limits
Inter-stage cooling between each compression stage is essential. We use tube-and-shell heat exchangers with water cooling as standard on all models above 18.5 kW. Air-cooling is available on smaller ZW series models. Each inter-stage cooler includes a moisture separator, and condensate is discharged automatically.
How to Specify an Oxygen Booster Compressor
When enquiring about a booster compressor, the most useful information to provide your supplier is the following:
- Gas type and purity requirement (medical or industrial oxygen; any trace contaminants present)
- Inlet pressure range (minimum and maximum — PSA output can vary with loading)
- Required outlet pressure (steady-state and peak)
- Required flow rate (Nm³/h or m³/min at inlet conditions, or at standard conditions — specify clearly)
- Duty cycle (continuous 24-hour, intermittent, seasonal)
- Available cooling medium (water supply temperature and pressure, or air-cooled preference)
- Available power supply (voltage, frequency, available fault current)
- Installation environment (indoor, outdoor, altitude, ambient temperature range)
- Applicable codes and standards (API 618, local pressure vessel code, electrical area classification)
PSA Plant Integration — Key Considerations
PSA oxygen generators produce oxygen at variable purity and variable pressure depending on the regeneration cycle. A buffer vessel (receiver tank) between the PSA and the booster is strongly recommended to dampen pressure fluctuations and allow the booster to operate at a more stable inlet condition. Without buffering, the booster must be designed for the minimum inlet pressure at maximum regeneration cycle draw-down, which increases machine size and cost.
For cylinder filling stations, the receiver should be sized for at least 10–15 minutes of compressor flow capacity. The booster inlet low-pressure cutoff should be set to stop the machine if PSA inlet pressure drops below the minimum safe operating inlet, preventing the machine from attempting to boost an insufficient oxygen supply.
Cylinder Filling: 150 bar vs 165 bar
Medical and industrial oxygen cylinders are rated to different working pressures in different regions. The most common standard in Europe (EN ISO 11513), much of Asia and most developing markets is 200 bar working pressure with a fill pressure of 150 bar at 15°C (the gas fills the cylinder at ambient temperature, not as a cryogenic liquid). In some markets, particularly where high-flow welding and cutting cylinders are used, a fill pressure of 165 bar is preferred to maximise gas content per cylinder.
Our ZW series is available in both configurations. The /150 suffix indicates 150 bar (15.0 MPa) outlet pressure; the /165 suffix indicates 165 bar (16.5 MPa). The machines share the same frame and most internal components — only the stage ratios and final-stage design differ.
Large Industrial Projects and EPC Procurement
For air separation unit integration, steel mill oxygen supply systems and chemical plant oxygen headers, the compressor is typically specified by an engineering contractor (EPC) against a process data sheet that defines all operating conditions, utility requirements and applicable codes. API 618 Fifth Edition is the standard reference for this class of purchase.
We supply skid-mounted package units — compressor, drive motor, inter-stage coolers, separators, instrumentation, control panel and interconnecting piping all mounted on a single baseplate — to simplify installation and site commissioning. For projects requiring ATEX/hazardous area certification, explosion-proof motor and instrument options are available.
To discuss your project's technical requirements, contact our engineering team at [email protected] or visit our about page for more on our manufacturing capability and project experience.
Maintenance and Total Cost of Ownership
The total cost of owning a compressor over its lifetime is dominated by energy consumption (typically 60–80%) and maintenance (15–30%), with initial purchase price representing a relatively small fraction. For this reason, the selection criteria that matter most are:
- Specific power consumption (kW per Nm³/h) at the duty point — ask for a certified performance test result
- Inter-overhaul interval — for our low-speed reciprocating designs, 25,000+ hours between major overhauls is typical
- Consumable parts count — oil-free reciprocating compressors require only piston rings, valve plates, and packing rings as regular consumables; no oil filters, no oil separator cartridges, no screw rotor timing gear
- Spare parts availability — our ZW, LW and DW series share standardised components across pressure classes, reducing the spare parts inventory required on site
For a fuller discussion of how to evaluate compressor total cost of ownership for your specific application, explore the full product catalogue or reach out for a comparative analysis against your current or competing equipment.
Common Questions
An oxygen booster compressor is specifically designed for pure oxygen service. The critical differences are: (1) oil-free compression throughout — lubricating oil and oxygen are incompatible at pressure due to combustion risk; (2) material selection compatible with oxygen service (avoiding aluminium alloys, certain plastics and copper alloys at high concentrations); (3) internal surface cleanliness standards — all wetted surfaces are degreased and cleaned to oxygen service standards before assembly; and (4) conservative design margins for pressure and temperature. A standard air compressor cannot be safely repurposed for oxygen service.
Yes. Our ZW, LW and DW series accept inlet pressures from atmospheric (approximately 0.1 MPa absolute) upward. PSA oxygen generators typically output at 0.3–0.6 MPa. We recommend installing a buffer receiver between the PSA and the booster to smooth out pressure fluctuations during the PSA regeneration cycle. The booster inlet low-pressure shutdown ensures the machine stops safely if PSA output falls below the minimum acceptable inlet pressure.
Our compressors are designed and manufactured to API 618 (Reciprocating Compressors for Petroleum, Chemical and Gas Industry Services). ISO 9001 quality management certification is held for our manufacturing facility. CE marking is available for European markets. Pressure vessel components are manufactured and tested to relevant national pressure vessel standards. For projects requiring specific regional certifications, please discuss your requirements with our engineering team before order placement.
Routine maintenance on our ZW, LW and DW series is minimal by design. External bearing lubrication requires one grease application per year. Valve plates and piston rings are the primary wearing components; inspection intervals depend on operating hours and gas conditions but typically fall in the range of 8,000–12,000 operating hours for valve inspection and 15,000–25,000 hours for piston ring replacement. There are no oil changes, no oil filter elements, and no oil separator cartridges — eliminating the highest-frequency maintenance items found on oil-injected compressors.
Yes. For large industrial and EPC projects, we supply fully assembled skid-mounted packages including the compressor, drive motor, inter-stage coolers and moisture separators, process and utility piping, instrumentation and safety devices, and a PLC-based control panel with local HMI. The package is factory-assembled, pressure-tested and performance-tested before shipment, minimising site installation time. ATEX and explosion-proof configurations are available for hazardous area classification. Contact us with your project data sheet for a technical and commercial proposal.
Get in Touch
Our engineers are ready to discuss your oxygen compression requirements — inlet conditions, outlet pressure, flow rate, gas purity, standards compliance and any special installation constraints.
For specifications, model selection, inlet/outlet pressure matching and custom engineering requests. Share your process data sheet and we will respond with a technical recommendation.
[email protected]Tell us your required outlet pressure, flow rate, inlet conditions and gas type. We will prepare a detailed technical and commercial proposal tailored to your project. All enquiries are treated as strictly confidential.
Open Enquiry Form →We manufacture to API 618 and related national standards. All compressors are available with custom inlet pressure, outlet pressure and flow rate configurations. Custom skid-mounted packages available for EPC projects.