IISER Bhopal Team Develops Affordable Oxygen Concentrator

The device, which is estimated to cost less than Rs 20,000, can provide 93-95 per cent pure oxygen with a flow rate of up to 3 litre/minute, IISER Bhopal researchers said.

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) in Bhopal have developed an affordable oxygen concentrator to meet the high demand of medical oxygen amid a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. The device, which is estimated to cost less than Rs 20,000, can provide 93-95 per cent pure oxygen with a flow rate of up to 3 litre/minute, they said. According to the team, the device, which costs around Rs 60,000-70,000 at present, has been developed as a solution to tackle the oxygen shortage amid the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. "The device, called 'Oxycon', has been developed using the open-source technology and material...Once approved, it can be used anywhere from small villages to big cities due to its affordability," said Siva Umapathy, Director, IISER Bhopal.