The technology in the BIP^® cylinder, pure genius, from the inside out

The unique BIP® technology is a self-contained purification system consisting of a specially designed valve and purifier bed. The BIP® system purifies gas at high pressure, in contrast to external purifiers, to achieve dramatically lower levels of impurities just before it leaves the cylinder. Lowest levels of impurities guaranteed As low as <10 ppb total hydrocarbons, <10 ppb O2 and <20 ppb H2O No more hassle and cost associated with external purifiers

How the BIP^® cylinder works

The BIP^® technology is a complete purification system contained within a cylinder. It consists of a purifier bed and a unique valve. Ultra High Purity gas filling the cylinder bypasses the purifier. It is then purified as it is withdrawn through the purifier bed.

The purifier bed

The purifier bed removes oxygen, moisture, hydrocarbons, halocarbons, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide from inert gases. Exposed only to our own high-quality gas, the bed is sealed inside the cylinder in an inert atmosphere at high pressure.

Our specifications and guarantees are based on extensive empirical data from controlled studies. We verify the performance of every purifier during manufacturing, and check purifiers after they are installed in cylinders. We do not have to regenerate the purifiers every time we refill a BIP^® cylinder. An ongoing comprehensive quality control program tracks the actual performance of the cylinders according to the number of refill cycles. Because we know the purifier's properties, the actual concentrations of the impurities in our gases, and the number of times a cylinder is refilled during its lifetime, we can control and guarantee the lifetime of the purifiers to an exceptionally tight specification.

Unique Valve

The unique valve has two features that protect the internal purifier from accidental contamination by air or a user's process line:

A check valve (non-return valve) protects both the purifier and the cylinder interior from any gas present at the valve outlet at a pressure higher than cylinder pressure.

The check valve also functions as a residual pressure valve. It closes when the cylinder pressure drops to about 50 psig (3 barg), maintaining a positive pressure in the cylinder at all times. Thus, unlike conventional cylinders, the BIP^® cylinder cannot be completely emptied and the interior accidentally exposed to atmospheric O₂ and H₂O if the cylinder valve should be left open.

The BIP^® cylinder valve also incorporates an additional gas flow path that is accessed by a secondary or bypass valve. This flow path connects the interior of the cylinder with the valve outlet, bypassing the flow path to the purifier, thus allowing the BIP^® cylinders to be filled around the purifier and not through it.

T-Purge and Regulator Assembly

To reduce the risk of air contamination associated with cylinder changeover, Air Products specially designed the gas supply system for the BIP^® cylinders. The integrated system consists of an analytical regulator and an upstream T-purge (or "block-and-bleed") valve assembly consisting of a vent valve on the tee'd leg and an in-line shutoff valve. This system connects the cylinder valve outlet with an Air Products regulator. The shutoff valve is just upstream of the regulator and protects it from exposure to air during cylinder changeover. The vent valve is between the shutoff valve and the cylinder valve outlet. With this T-purge assembly, the section of gas line between the regulator and the cylinder can be easily and efficiently purged with clean carrier gas before the regulator is opened to feed gas to the instrument.

T-Purge Cylinder exchange procedure:

 

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