For natural gas companies and nitrogen generator suppliers, 99.99% nitrogen purity is often considered the gold standard for nearly all applications. While this assumption may seem reasonable—since most processes can operate smoothly with minimal impurities—it doesn’t necessarily mean such high purity is essential for your specific needs.

The real question is: If your application doesn’t require 99.99% pure nitrogen, why are you paying for it?

Producing nitrogen at 99.9%, 99.99%, or 99.999% purity levels can involve drastically different costs—sometimes tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. The reason is simple: the purer the nitrogen, the more compressed air you need, which means you need a larger compressor. Additionally, every other component—dryers, drains, air receivers—must be appropriately scaled up, significantly increasing total system cost.

So unless your process explicitly requires ultra-high purity, 99.99% nitrogen may not be the most cost-effective choice.

Take laser cutting as an example: nitrogen purity requirements vary depending on the type of metal being cut and the final finish required. In many cases, acceptable purity levels range from 95% to 99.9%—far below the so-called standard.

Optimizing nitrogen purity to your actual production needs can result in major savings without compromising performance or quality.