Liquid oxygen is a powerful oxidising agent: organic materials will burn rapidly and energetically in liquid oxygen, hence LOx is a common liquid oxidizer propellant for spacecraft rocket applications usually in combination with liquid hydrogen or kerosene. It was used in the very first rocket applications like the V2 missile and Redstone, R-7 Semyorka or Atlas boosters. LOX is useful in this role because it creates a high specific impulse. LOx was also used in some early ICBMs although more modern ICBMs do not use LOX because its cryogenic properties and need for regular replenishment to replace boiloff make it harder to maintain and launch quickly. During World War II, liquid oxygen was used as an oxidizer in several Nazi Germany military rocket designs, under name A-Stoff and Sauerstoff.

LOX also had extensive use in making oxyliquit explosives.

Liquid nitrogen has a significantly lower boiling point (77 K) than oxygen (90 K), and vessels containing liquid nitrogen can condense oxygen from air: when most of the nitrogen has evaporated from such a vessel there is a risk that liquid oxygen remaining can react violently with organic material. Conversely, liquid nitrogen can be oxygen-enriched by letting it stand in open air; atmospheric oxygen dissolves in it, while nitrogen evaporates preferentially.

See also

• List of Stoffs
• Oxygen
• Rocket fuel
• Tetraoxygen - "Red Oxygen"

External links

• LOx enhanced combustion: Lighting a barbeque with liquid oxygen Do not try this yourself
• Dave Barry's comment on the above: Liquid oxygen can overcome balky charcoal
• Demonstration of the paramagnetism of LOx

Rocket fuels

LOX | Oksigen cair | 液体酸素