Respiratory protection

Firstly, it binds the carbon dioxide in the exhaled air and secondly, it releases oxygen in a reaction with the humidity of the exhaled air. When you breathe out, the moist exhaled air flows over the KO2 cartridge and collects in a breathing bag, which then fills. The exhaled air is then inhaled again in the same way. This is a so-called pendulum breathing. To prevent accidentally inhaling the potentially toxic ambient air, a nose clip must be worn when using the device.

The principle is based on the assumption that when you breathe harder, more oxygen is consumed. When the breathing volume increases, more moisture reaches the cartridge and more oxygen is released. It can happen that people under stress can have an increased breathing rate without actually consuming more oxygen. This means that in the long term more oxygen is released than is consumed. This can cause the breathing bag to inflate excessively. The excess air is then automatically released via a valve. Overall, the system is designed to deliver more rather than less oxygen, so that the bag is always full.