Development of a system for accelerated/ complete acclimatization, prior to induction into high altitude, using nitrogen enriched atmosphere

Given the current security situation at the Northern border, this would greatly enhance the capability of the security forces for rapid deployment.

Challenges: At present, induction to high altitude entails multiple stops at various altitudes for acclimatization, totaling 14 days. This delays troop induction and may make a significant difference to the response to a security threat. Pre-acclimatization will improve the response of Indian security forces.

Development: The system will consist of a nitrogen generation system, which will nitrogen enrich the atmosphere of a designated room, and provide a partial pressure of oxygen between 16.6% and 16.0% (6000 ft to 7000 ft). Safety will be maintained using a quadruple redundancy and a separate hard-wired cutout, in order to prevent a common mode failure. Development of the acclimatization system will entail the following:

• Installation of a nitrogen generation system.
• Installation of a controller and sensor system with quadruple redundancy, so as to ensure safety of humans.
• Installation of a separate hard-wired cutout.
• Installation of two such units, one at Adampur for operational reasons and one at No 1 Aeromedical Training Centre (1 AMTC), Hindan for research purposes.
• Exposure of human participants to the partial 17 pressure of oxygen equivalent to 6000, 6500 and 7000 ft to establish the minimum altitude that would result in acclimatization, after an exposure of 3-6 months for 8h a day.
• Assessment of the extent of acclimatization.
• Development of appropriate schedules for using such a chamber for acclimatization before induction.