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Reference.org
Pressure swing adsorption
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<p>Pressure swing adsorption (PSA) is a technique used to separate some gas species from a mixture of gases (typically air) under pressure according to the species' molecular characteristics and affinity for an <a href="/facts/Adsorbent/ARH9peYM">adsorbent</a> material. It operates at near-ambient temperature and significantly differs from the <a href="/facts/Air_separation/WWTx03pP">cryogenic distillation</a> commonly used to separate gases. Selective adsorbent materials (e.g., <a href="/facts/Zeolite/SNrXy4v2">zeolites</a>, (aka <a href="/facts/Molecular_sieve/Lzle8J7k">molecular sieves</a>), <a href="/facts/Activated_carbon/YAbaXCcb">activated carbon</a>, etc.) are used as trapping material, preferentially adsorbing the target gas species at high pressure. The process then swings to low pressure to desorb the adsorbed gas. </p>