Why price nitrogen per part?

Every alternative is priced per part or per year: a stronger lamp, a different photoinitiator or accepting the defect. An hourly gas figure cannot be compared with any of them.

What sets the curtain flow?

Leakage more than chemistry. Baffles, brush seals, a longer tunnel and a smaller aperture reduce consumption permanently, which a larger gas contract never does.

Can I shut the nitrogen off between runs?

Usually, and it saves roughly in proportion, but not exactly. A purged zone refills with air and takes time and gas to bring back down.

Is nitrogen or more irradiance the better answer?

Compare the annual gas bill with the one-off cost of a lamp or chemistry change. Where gas is a meaningful fraction, the upgrade usually wins and removes the asphyxiation hazard too.

UV Curing calculator

UV Nitrogen Consumption Calculator: Cost per Part and per Year

Price the nitrogen a UV line uses in units that compare with the alternatives. Enter curtain flow, the fraction of the hour it runs, delivered gas price and parts produced.

What this calculator does

Price a nitrogen inerting curtain per part and per year so it can be compared with the alternatives.

Formula used

Hourly consumption (scf/hr) = curtain flow × lamp-on fraction
Hourly cost = hourly consumption × delivered price
Nitrogen cost per part = hourly cost ÷ parts per hour
Nitrogen per part = hourly consumption ÷ parts per hour
Annual cost = hourly cost × 2,000 operating hours

Inputs explained

Nitrogen Curtain Flow Rate: Delivered flow at the curtain while inerting.
UV Lamp On-Time Fraction: Fraction of the hour the curtain genuinely flows.
Delivered Nitrogen Price: All-in delivered gas price including rental, vaporiser energy and delivery.
Parts Cured per Hour: Production rate through the inerted zone.

How to use the result

Best suited to comparing nitrogen against a lamp upgrade, annualising a gas cost for a capital case, pricing what a leaky cure zone consumes.
Prices gas only, excluding regulators, piping, monitoring and generator capital. Cannot say whether the flow reaches the oxygen level the chemistry needs. Excludes purge time after interruptions and the asphyxiation hazard entirely.

Common questions

Why price nitrogen per part? Every alternative is priced per part or per year: a stronger lamp, a different photoinitiator or accepting the defect. An hourly gas figure cannot be compared with any of them.
What sets the curtain flow? Leakage more than chemistry. Baffles, brush seals, a longer tunnel and a smaller aperture reduce consumption permanently, which a larger gas contract never does.
Can I shut the nitrogen off between runs? Usually, and it saves roughly in proportion, but not exactly. A purged zone refills with air and takes time and gas to bring back down.
Is nitrogen or more irradiance the better answer? Compare the annual gas bill with the one-off cost of a lamp or chemistry change. Where gas is a meaningful fraction, the upgrade usually wins and removes the asphyxiation hazard too.

Last reviewed 2026-10-01.