It's not oxyGEN you need, it's an oxiDIZER you need. Bubbling oxygen through the solution can re-oxidize the chemicals that are there (such as with CuCl etchant), but oxygen alone isn't enough to work with plain HCl.
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Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] HCl Etchant Question
2010-03-22 by DJ Delorie