Gas cylinders come in a variety of sizes to accommodate different types of gases. Not only does the overall volume of the gas impact the size of the cylinder, but the amount of pressure required to store it. Different companies use different sizes of gas cylinders for different gases, with slight variations from each manufacturer. However, many common sizes are used to allow for easier refilling of the cylinder and cylinder storage.
Here are some of the most common gas cylinder sizes and their purposes:
High Pressure Cylinders
High pressure gas cylinders are commonplace in countless industries, being used to store some of the most-used compressed gases. This includes nitrogen, hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, and oxygen.
While size variations are likely, most are categorized between 20 and 300, with the number referring to the volume in cubic feet. However, some categorize high pressure gas cylinders by lettering, although sizes remain the same for the most part.
Common high-pressure cylinder sizes include:
• 20
• 40
• 60
• 80
• 125
• 150
• 200
• 300
Common Oxygen cylinder sizes include:
• M4 – 4 cubic feet
• ML6 – 5.8 cubic feet
• D – 14.6 cubic feet
• JD – 22.9 cubic feet
• E – 24.1 cubic feet
• M60 – 60.9 cubic feet
• MM – 121.9 cubic feet
Cylinder Packs
High pressure cylinder packs are also a common size option for storing high volumes of gas. Combining several cylinders in a single unit, they remove the need to frequently swap empty cylinders for full cylinders.
They are typically available in packs of 6, 8, and 12, although larger packs with additional cylinders are available too.
Low Pressure Gas Cylinders
Low pressure gas cylinders serve a range of purposes, including storing propane, propylene, and acetylene. Given the different types of gases stored in low pressure gas cylinders, their sizes are often more diverse. For this reason, most low-pressure gas cylinder sizes relate to the type of gas stored.
Propane gas cylinders traditionally require the lowest pressure, roughly around 109psi, with common sizes including 20, 33, 60, and 100.
Propylene gas cylinders need slightly more pressure compared to propane cylinders, approximately 137psi, with common sizes including 6, 22.5, 60, and 100.
Acetylene gas cylinders have one of the highest pressures of low-pressure cylinders, providing 250psi on average. Acetylene is a gas used predominately in welding and fabricating, with it’s volatile composition requiring special gas cylinders for storage.
Their most common sizes are also categorized using lettering and numbers rather than just numbers – these often differ from manufacturer to manufacturer. Common sizes for acetylene cylinders include:
• MC (10cf)
• B (40cf)
• AX75 or WQ or A60(60-75cf)
• SM or WS (120-140cf)
• MED (200-250)
• LG310 (300-340cf)
• LG390 (297cf)
• LG420 (420cf)
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