PureAire Monitoring Systems is excited to introduce its new Dual Oxygen/Carbon Dioxide Monitor, an important addition to our full line of Oxygen Deficiency Monitors, Carbon Dioxide Monitors, and Combustible/Toxic Gas Detectors.  Our new Monitor is designed for continuous monitoring of oxygen and carbon dioxide levels  across a wide variety of applications, including cryogenic facilities, breweries, food processing plants, cannabis grow rooms, pharmaceutical manufacturing operations, laboratories, hospitals, and universities.
​
Our Dual Monitor can sample O2/CO2 levels from up to 100 feet away and is ideal for facilities that use inert gases, including, but not limited to, nitrogen, helium, and argon. Its NEMA 4X/IP66 dust-tight and water-tight enclosure will protect the Monitor against dust, water, and damage from ice formation.

PureAire’s new Dual O2/CO2 Monitor continually measures oxygen levels from 0-25%, and carbon dioxide levels from 0-50,000 parts per million (ppm), with both O2 and CO2 measurements readily visible on the Monitor’s easy-to-read backlit displays. Depending on our customers’ specific requirements, the Monitor can be linked to a programmable logic controller (PLC), a multi-channel controller, or tied into building systems themselves.

​The new O2/CO2 Monitor features dual built-in LED visual alarms, two alarm level set-points for both O2 and CO2, as well as two relays for each monitored gas. The Monitor responds in seconds to changes in oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, and it will remain accurate over a wide range of temperature and humidity levels.
​
PureAire’s Dual Oxygen/Carbon Dioxide Monitor offers thorough air monitoring, with no time-consuming maintenance or calibration required. Built with durable, non-depleting, zirconium oxide sensor cells, and non-dispersive, infrared (NDIR) sensor cells to ensure longevity, PureAire’s Dual O2/CO2 Monitor can last, trouble-free, for 10+ years in normal working conditions.

Centuries ago, merchants and shippers would place a lit candle inside barrels used to store biscuits before closing the lid. The idea was that the candle flame would deplete the oxygen inside the barrel to help keep the biscuits from spoiling. These days, the candle flame has been replaced by processes called Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP), which can be either active or passive. By altering the atmosphere inside food product packages, or by using specialized packaging films, today’s food processors can preserve freshness and taste; extend shelf-life; prevent oxidation, which can lead to food spoilage; and protect against crushing the food contents inside the packaging, all without the use of chemical additives, stabilizers, or even candles.

Why Use Modified Atmosphere Packaging?
​Consumers want food that not only looks, tastes, and smells good, but is also convenient and lasts longer than a few days after purchase. In order to satisfy consumers, food packagers need to eliminate or, at least, control factors that contribute to food spoilage, including improper levels of moisture, temperature, or light; excessive oxygen (i.e., oxidation); and the growth of microorganisms (such as mold or pathogens that can lead to food-borne illnesses).

Spoiled food means lost revenues and lower profits for producers and intermediaries, higher food prices passed on to the consumer, and an environmental burden, as food waste reportedly contributes to some 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

How Does MAP Work?
Active modified atmosphere packaging works by changing the atmosphere inside food packaging, typically by the introduction of gases. For instance, carbon dioxide is often used to remove oxygen from inside the packaging of breads and other baked goods, in order to keep the products from going stale, prevent mold growth, and to extend shelf-life.
Packaged foods with high-fat content, such as certain cheeses or fish high in fatty acids, require a high concentration of carbon dioxide to prevent mold growth and to prevent the cheese or fish from tasting  rancid. However, excessive levels of  carbon dioxide can make certain foods taste sour. To prevent that from occurring, food packagers may elect to use nitrogen, or a mixture of gases, instead of carbon dioxide alone.

Conversely, while certain meat, fish, and poultry require that all or almost all oxygen be removed from inside packaging and replaced with carbon dioxide and/or nitrogen to prevent microbial growth and spoilage, oxygen is actually added to some packaged meats, low-fat fish, and shellfish to prevent fading or loss of color, as well as to inhibit the growth of certain types of bacteria.

Adding nitrogen gas to packaging not only helps salty snack foods stay crispy and fresh by displacing the oxygen inside food packaging, but it also helps protect the contents from getting crushed or broken during transport of the products from manufacturing facilities to stores and, ultimately, to consumers’ pantries.

Fresh fruits and vegetables are often packaged by using a passive form of MAP which includes specialized, permeable packaging films. The permeable film allows the fresh produce to continue to respire (that is, breathe) after being harvested, but at a much slower rate than if it were still on the plant. Low oxygen levels, combined with carbon dioxide or nitrogen, help to preserve the freshness, taste, and appearance of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Proper Monitoring Can Preserve Food Products and Protect Packaging Personnel
Balancing the correct mixture of oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen is vital when it comes to food packaging. Too much or too little of a required gas can lead to foods that have unappetizing taste, smell, or appearance and, in baked goods, can promote mold growth, and staleness.

Moreover, food packagers and others working around carbon dioxide and nitrogen need to be aware of the potential safety risks associated with these odorless and colorless oxygen-depleting gases. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), an environment in which oxygen levels fall below 19.5 percent is considered an oxygen-deficient atmosphere and should be treated as immediately dangerous to health or life. When there is not enough oxygen in the air, persons working in the affected area may become disoriented, lose consciousness, or even suffocate due to the lack of sufficient oxygen.

Because carbon dioxide and nitrogen are devoid of odor and color, individuals working around these gases might well, in the absence of appropriate monitoring equipment, be unaware that a safety risk situation has developed.

PureAire Monitors

PureAire Monitoring Systems’ Dual Oxygen/Carbon Dioxide Monitor offers thorough air monitoring, with no time-consuming maintenance or calibration required. A screen displays current oxygen and carbon dioxide levels for at-a-glance reading by food packaging employees, who derive peace of mind from the Monitor’s presence and reliable performance.

In the event of a carbon dioxide or nitrogen gas leak, and a decrease in oxygen to an unsafe level, PureAire’s Monitor will set off an alarm, complete with horns and flashing lights, alerting personnel to evacuate the area.
​
PureAire’s Dual Oxygen/Carbon Dioxide Monitor is well-suited for facilities where gases such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen are used. Our Dual O2/CO2 monitor includes both a non-depleting, zirconium oxide sensor cell, to monitor oxygen levels, and a non-dispersive infrared (NDIR) sensor cell, to monitor carbon dioxide levels. PureAire’s O2/CO2 monitors can last, trouble-free, for over 10 years under normal operating conditions.

​
In 1996, California passed Proposition 215, making it the first of many states to ultimately legalize medical cannabis; as of January 2020, an additional 32 states and the District of Columbia have also made medical cannabis legal. Additionally, recreational use of cannabis is now legal in 11 states and is decriminalized in many others. Cannabis legalization and decriminalization have made cannabidiol (“CBD”, a non-psychoactive compound found in cannabis), and tetrahydrocannabinol(“THC”, the chemical responsible for most of cannabis’ mind-altering effects), available to both recreational users and patients seeking treatment for such health issues as arthritis, anxiety, inflammation, seizure disorders, and nausea.
Since California’s groundbreaking move in 1996, medical and recreational cannabis has become a significant and rapidly growing industry. According to DC-based cannabis researcher, New Frontier Data, legal cannabis sales in the U.S. are expected to reach $30 billion annually by 2025. The industry growth has led to a substantial increase in grow rooms, medical dispensaries and other retail outlets, and extraction facilities.
Extraction
Extraction is a process by which desired chemical compounds are extracted and separated from the cannabis plant. Extraction strips the plant of essential oils, including CBD, THC, and terpenes (aromatic oils that give cannabis plants their distinctive scents). The extracted oils can be utilized in vape pens, edibles, capsules, tinctures, and topical solutions. Based on the end product, various techniques can be used for extracting the oils, including carbon dioxide (CO2) extraction and hydrocarbon solvent extraction (using solvents such as butane or propane).
Carbon Dioxide Extraction
Carbon dioxide, high pressure, and heat can be combined to create a “supercritical fluid” that extracts cannabis components from the plant. The CO2 extraction method generally produces high yields with relatively little waste. Temperatures and pressures can be adjusted to create multiple products including vaporizer oils; dabbing concentrates such as so-called waxes, crumble, shatters, and saps; and distillates (cannabis extracts that have been further purified and processed to separate and isolate the various cannabinoids, which include CBD and THC). Because CO2 evaporates on its own, many in the medical products and food and beverage industries find the CO2 extraction method appealing, since no residual carbon dioxide remains in the final manufactured product.
Hydrocarbon Solvents Extraction
Hydrocarbon extraction typically uses organic solvents such as butane and propane to separate essential oils from the plant material. The use of hydrocarbons for extraction is popular owing, in large part, to the relatively low overhead costs, efficiency (including the wide variety of products that can be created from a single extraction, without the need for further refinement), and high product quality associated with this technique. For instance, the low boiling point of butane, and even lower boiling point of propane, allow extractors to remove the desired compounds without risking evaporation of, or damage to, the delicate and heat-sensitive cannabinoids and terpenes. Moreover, their low boiling points makes it relatively easy to purge any residual butane or propane at the end of the extraction process, leaving behind only a relatively pure product.
Oxygen Monitors Can Protect Extractors and Their Employees
 While CO2 and hydrocarbon solvents are important techniques for extracting essential oils from cannabis plants use of these gases is not without risk, since extraction facility personnel and property are exposed to potential leaks from gas supply lines and storage containers.
Carbon dioxide is an oxygen-depleting gas that is both odorless and colorless. As such, absent appropriate monitoring to detect that a leak has occurred, extraction employees could become dizzy, lose consciousness, and even suffocate from breathing oxygen-deficient air. Hydrocarbons such as butane and propane also deplete oxygen and, they are flammable and explosive as well.
Proper gas detection equipment should be placed where the cannabis extraction process takes place, as well as in CO2 and hydrocarbon storage rooms, and in any other site where CO2, butane, and propane may be expected to accumulate. The gas detection equipment should include the capacity to activate visual and audible alarms, stopping the flow of gas and turning on the ventilation system.
PureAire Monitors
PureAire Monitoring Systems has safety monitors to meet the needs of cannabis extractors, whether they use CO2 or hydrocarbon solvents.
For facilities using carbon dioxide to extract their products, PureAire’s line of dual oxygen/carbon dioxide monitors offer thorough air monitoring, with no time-consuming maintenance or calibration required. The O2/CO2 monitor comes with user-adjustable alarm setpoints for both oxygen and carbon dioxide. The monitor is built with zirconium oxide sensor cells and non-dispersive infrared sensor (NDIR)cells, to ensure longevity.PureAire’s O2/CO2 monitors can last, trouble-free, for over 10 years under normal operating conditions.

Extractors utilizing hydrocarbon solvents, such as butane or propane, rely on PureAire’s LEL, explosion-proof, combustible gas monitors. The monitor is housed in a NEMA 4 enclosure specifically designed to prevent an explosion. The durable, long-life LEL catalytic sensor will last 5+ years without needing to be replaced.
​
PureAire monitors feature an easy to read screen, which displays current oxygen levels for at-a-glance observation by employees, who derive peace of mind from the monitor’s presence and reliable performance. In the event of a gas leak, or a drop in oxygen to an unsafe OSHA action level, PureAire’s monitors will set off alarms, complete with horns and flashing lights, alerting personnel to evacuate the area. At the same time, the monitors can be programmed to turn off the flow of gas (CO2, butane, or propane, as appropriate), and turn on the ventilation system.
In short, PureAire’s monitors enable cannabis extractors, in a cost-effective manner, to preserve both the quality of their products and the well-being of their employees.

Overview
As dog owners, we treat our pets as we do our children, taking care that the food we give them is not only filling and nutritious but contains only high-quality ingredients sourced and processed in ways that meet our exacting standards.

For many owners, far in the past are the days of grabbing any old bag of kibble off the shelf and feeding it to Fido or Ginger. Dog owners today are making informed choices in their purchases of pet food, such as whether the ingredients are all-natural or organic, whether they contain allergens to be avoided, which proteins predominate in the mix, etc. Not only are owners increasingly educated about what goes into their dogs’ food, they are faced with many choices when it comes to exactly what form the food will take.

Types of Dog Food
Major pet food types available to contemporary dog owners, from a wide array of manufacturers, include dry food, semi-moist, canned, raw, and freeze-dried food.

Dry food, commonly known as kibble, is the most prevalent type of dog food on the market. Semi-moist food is served either on its own or added to kibble for a variety of tastes and textures. Canned food is a moist product with a long shelf life. Raw food appeals to owners who believe that an uncooked all-meat diet is closer to what dogs would have eaten in the wild, before they became domesticated. Raw foods may be produced and sold as either fresh, fresh frozen, or freeze-dried.

Freeze-Dried Dog Food
The freeze-dried dog food segment--including 100% freeze-dried meals, so-called “kibble+” (dry kibble mixed with freeze-dried components), and freeze-dried treats, such as beef liver and other types of training tidbits--currently commands only a niche share of the ~$30 Billion U.S. dog food industry, but it is rapidly growing in popularity among owners seeking, as in their own diets, to avoid highly processed foods.

Purchasing freeze-dried proteins, whether cooked or raw, as well as fruits and vegetables (which are typically freeze-dried in a raw state), allows owners to provide their pets with minimally processed, nutrient-rich, natural foods. Freeze-drying quality ingredients makes for an easily transportable, shelf-stable tasty food that does not require refrigeration.

Gas Usage in Freeze-Dried Food Processing and Packaging
Food safety is as important in the pet food industry as it is in the manufacturing and distribution of human-grade foodstuffs.  Proper temperatures must be maintained in order to prevent mold and bacteria growth resulting from, among other things, improper cooking and cooling temperatures, as well as insufficient or excessive moisture.

Quality control and safety concerns dictate that, because of their rapid cooling and freezing properties, liquid nitrogen (LN2) and liquid carbon dioxide (liquid CO2) be used in pet food production to uniformly cool proteins after cooking, and to freeze them as part of the freeze-drying process. Once properly chilled, the proteins and other ingredients that go into a freeze-dried dog food product are quickly frozen in blast freezers using LN2 or liquid CO2.  After freezing, they are placed into vacuum drying chambers for some 12 hours, until the drying process is complete (i.e., essentially all moisture has been removed), following which the food is ready for packaging.

To prolong dog food shelf life (by inhibiting the growth of mold and bacteria which thrive in oxygenated environments), nitrogen is injected to displace oxygen from the product packaging.The addition of nitrogen during the packaging phase also provides a cushion to protect the contents from settling and breakage that can occur during shipping and handling.

Oxygen Monitors Can Improve Safety in Pet Food Manufacturing and Packaging
While their use is essential in the production of freeze-dried dog food, nitrogen and carbon dioxide can pose health risks (including death by asphyxiation) to employees working in the industry. Nitrogen and carbon dioxide are both odorless and colorless, and they displace oxygen. Absent appropriate monitoring, workers would be unable to detect a leak if one were to occur in a gas cylinder or line. Conversely, by utilizing a top-quality oxygen monitor, safety and production personnel can track oxygen levels and detect leaks before workers’ health is jeopardized.

PureAire Monitors

With PureAire Monitoring Systems’ dual oxygen/carbon dioxide monitor, pet food producers can track levels of oxygen and detect nitrogen or carbon dioxide leaks before workers’ health is at risk. PureAire’s O2/CO2 monitor measures oxygen and carbon dioxide 24/7, with no time-consuming maintenance or calibration required. PureAire’s monitors can handle temperatures as low as -40C, making them ideally suited for environments, such as pet food processing plants, that use liquid nitrogen and carbon dioxide.
​
​Built with zirconium oxide sensor cells and non-dispersive infrared sensor (NDIR) cells, to ensure longevity, PureAire’s O2/CO2 monitors can last, trouble-free, for over 10 years under normal operation conditions.

The College of American Pathologists ("CAP")recently imposed new requirementsto address risks related to the use and storage of liquid nitrogen ("LN2") and dry ice.

Background
The new requirements come after a deadly incident in 2017, when liquid nitrogen leaked at a Georgia lab that was not accredited through CAP.  Emergency responders were called to the scene when an employee suffered burns and, moreover,lost consciousness from oxygen deprivation caused by the leak. While the employeeeventuallyrecovered from her injuries, one of the first responders died of asphyxiation as a result ofthe nitrogen leak.
That unfortunate incident illustrates the dangers of nitrogen leaks,which are inherent in the storage and use of LN2. Indeed, there are several cases reported nearly every year of laboratory personnel who die of asphyxiation caused by exposure to nitrogen gas.
Asphyxiation riskis present in dry ice usage as well since, if it is stored in areas without proper ventilation, dry ice can replaceoxygen with carbon dioxide, potentially causing workers to rapidly lose consciousness.

CAP’s New Regulations
Despite their safety risks, both dry ice and LN2 have many beneficial uses in commercial and lab settings, including hospital and research facilities. As such, CAP’s new focus on utilizing best practices to increase employee safety and reduce the danger of nitrogen leaks is vitally important.
Before the regulations were changed, lab directors had greater personal discretion in selectingthe types and deployment of safety equipment utilized in their facilities. Now, laboratories are required to place oxygen("O2") monitors at human height breathing levels anywhere liquid nitrogen is used or stored, and they must place signage warning of safety risk regarding, and train all affected employees on safe handling of, LN2 and dry ice.
Pathologists understand that oxygen/carbon dioxide monitors must be placed appropriately anywheredry ice or LN2 are used or stored.  Even a couple tanks of liquid nitrogen kept in a supply closet pose a safety risk, because even a small leak can quickly displace a large amount of oxygen.
​
Oxygen Monitors Protect Laboratory Workers
While many people realize that the use and storage of liquid nitrogen and dry ice can present health risks, they may fail to grasp the speed at which circumstances can become dangerous.  It takes only a few breaths of oxygen-deficient air for one to lose consciousness.

AS CAP recognized, oxygen and carbon dioxide monitors offer an effective solution to the health and safety risks posed by nitrogen leaks and inadequatedry ice storage. O2/CO2 monitors continually monitor the air, and they will remain silent so long as oxygen and carbon dioxideremain within normal levels.However,in the event that oxygen is depleted to an unsafe level (19.5%, as established by OSHA), or carbon dioxide levels rise to an unsafe level, alarms embedded in the monitors will sound, alerting employees to evacuate the area and summon assistance from qualified responders.

PureAireMonitors
PureAire Monitoring Systems’ line of oxygen and dual oxygen/carbon dioxide monitors offerthorough air  monitoring, with no time-consuming maintenance or calibration required., The monitors function well in confined spaces, such as closets, basements, and other cramped quarters.  PureAire’s monitors can handle temperatures as low as -40 C, making them ideally suited for environments, such as laboratories, that utilize liquid nitrogen or dry ice. A screen displays current oxygen levels for at-a-glance reading by employees, who derive peace of mind from the monitor’s presence and reliable performance.
​

Built with zirconium oxide sensor cells and non-dispersive infrared sensor (NDIR)cells, to ensure longevity, Pure Aire O2 monitors can last, trouble-free, for over 10 years under normal operating conditions.  That makes PureAire a cost-effective choice forprotecting employees and complying with the new safety regulations affecting labs and hospitals.
Learn more about oxygen monitors and best practices for their use at www.pureairemonitoring.com.