Ageless Oxygen Absorber Overview

Ageless comes in a variety of types, each exhibiting different absorption characteristics such as optimum external moisture levels and speed of operation. In general, only Ageless Z type is recommended for museum applications (and most food applications, as well). The information below pertains to most Ageless products.

Ageless® Z Oxygen Absorber by Mitsubishi is available as pre-measured packets/sachets that will absorb atmospheric oxygen. Ageless® is used to remove oxygen from hermetically sealed packages, providing oxygen-free storage conditions.

Ageless® Z packets consist of an iron-powder based system in an especially designed pouch. An RH of 45% or more is suggested for optimal oxygen absorption. To determine the minimum amount of Ageless® required, estimate the total volume of air in your package in ml. and multiply by 20%. Each Z100 packet will absorb the oxygen from 500 ml of air. When using Ageless of anoxic insect treatment or conservation applications, we recommend using at least 30% or more than the amount of Ageless® required to remove the oxygen from a high-barrier container; this will provide long-term anoxic storage conditions. Please contact us for information on industrial applications.

Nitrogen purging of the container will reduce the amount of Ageless® needed (an especially useful procedure when large volumes are involved, but note that compressed nitrogen is very dry). Packing the voids in the container with sealed barrier film envelopes (eg. containing an empty box, wadded paper, or just air) will also reduce the amount of Ageless® needed.

Ageless® Z100 is available in bags of 100 individual sachets, Ageless® Z1000 are in bags of 25 individual sachets, see our price list for more information. Full cartons purchases offer substantial savings over smaller quantities from “broken cartons”. Please enquire for bulk purchase prices.

Don’t panic, we’ll be happy to help you determine the volume of your object, and the Ageless® you will need. Use our inquiry form, or call us at 800 683-4696

Supplementary notes:

(1 litre = 10 cm X 10 cm X 10 cm; 1 cubic foot = approx. 27 litres)

Note that the numbers assigned to different sizes of Ageless® sachets represent the amount of oxygen it will absorb, NOT the total amount of air to be treated. For example: One sachet of Z100 will absorb 100 ml (0.1 litre) of oxygen- as 20% of the air is oxygen, this is the amount of oxygen contained in 500 ml (0.5 litre) of air. Another example would be: One sachet of Z1000 will absorb 1000 ml (1.0 litre) of oxygen- as 20% of the air is oxygen, this is the amount of oxygen contained in 5000 ml (5.0 litres) of air.