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> > A question I asked on my Nitrox course (IANTD Technical Nitrox) was "Why is > > the limit 40% O2?". [...] > > > > The course instructor sort of bluffed his way round it, passing the buck to > > the equipment manufacturers. Can anybody enlighten me? And so, around it goes. I had the opportunity to talk to the illustrious fellow that taught me what little I know about Nitrox, John Conway of Rudees Inlet, Virginia Beach. According to John, there was a study done after the explosion of Apollo 13. One of the findings was that any O2 concentration of something above 40% was as reactive as a concentration of 100%. O2 concentrations below this are significantly less reactive. There seems to be a critical point or threshold working here. According to John, the primary concern is an explosion caused by the inadvertent mixing of hydrocarbons with the O2 enriched gas. He confirmed my understanding that it is the FO2 that is important here, not the PO2. John was also able to confirm that, per IANTD standards, Nitrox is _NOT_ a prerequisite to Deep Air. There is an overlap between the two where partial pressures and O2 toxicity is concerned. I hope this helps clarify a few things. If any of you have further questions, I will defer to the master. Please call John Conway, IANTD Instructor #57, Rudees Inlet Dive Center, Virginia Beach, VA (804) 425-2997. :~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~: :Patrick Murphy : murphy@un*.sl*.un*.co* : :Unisys, Government Systems Division :"Ah, this is obviously some strange : :McLean, VA : usage of the word _safe_ that I wasnt: :(703) 847-2545 : previously aware of." : : Opinions expressed are mine alone : Arthur Dent, THHGTTG : ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The score: Opinions-3 A**holes-1~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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