THE MAN FROM LOX, a liquid oxygen safety training film, is one of the most infamous films ever produced by the U.S. Government. Created in the aftermath of a series of accidents involving liquid oxygen, the film uses ironic humor to disarm the skeptical viewer, all the while setting up a very real, deeply disturbing, and quite serious finale.
Liquid oxygen—abbreviated LOx, LOX or Lox in the aerospace, submarine and gas industries—is one of the physical forms of elemental oxygen. In commerce, liquid oxygen is classified as an industrial gas and is widely used for industrial and medical purposes. Liquid oxygen is obtained from the oxygen found naturally in air by fractional distillation in a cryogenic air separation plant.
The U.S. Air Force recognized the strategic importance of liquid oxygen, both as an oxidizer and as a supply of gaseous oxygen for breathing in hospitals and high-altitude aircraft flights. In the 1980s the USAF started a program of building its own oxygen-generation facilities at all major consumption bases. The majority of USAF personnel encounter LOX during aircraft servicing operations. Liquid oxygen is also common cryogenic liquid oxidizer propellant for spacecraft rocket applications, usually in combination with liquid hydrogen, kerosene or methane. Liquid oxygen is useful in this role because it creates a high specific impulse.It was used in the very first rocket applications like the V2 missile (under the name A-Stoff and Sauerstoff) and Redstone, R-7 Semyorka, Atlas boosters, and the ascent stages of the Apollo Saturn rockets. Liquid oxygen was also used in some early ICBMs, although more modern ICBMs do not use liquid oxygen because its cryogenic properties and need for regular replenishment to replace boiloff make it harder to maintain and launch quickly. Many modern rockets use liquid oxygen, including the main engines on the now-retired Space Shuttle.
LOX or liquid oxygen is not flammable on its own; however once combined with a flammable item, it can have explosive results. The boil off, or fog of oxygen that is produced can create oxygen enriched environments increasing the danger of fires and explosions. LOX has an expansion ratio of 1:861, meaning that one liter of liquid oxygen will expand to 861 liters of gaseous oxygen. LOX is considered a cryogenic compound, meaning that it instantly freezes biological material, like skin, on contact. When LOX encounters petroleum based products, it can react violently causing explosions and fires. There have been reports of alcohol based hand sanitizers catching fire in oxygen-enriched environments at hospitals.
Due to LOX’s inherently dangerous nature the Air Force laid down some strict rules regarding its use and storage.
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
