System membrane

A membrane module may be a stand-alone loop which may be operated in batch or continuous mode. Often a few membrane modules are combined in parallel or in series, sometimes even in a single vessel, to become a continuous loop or stage. When a system of multiple stages or loops are required to achieve the target permeation rate and final 

Figuie 5.5 Example of a multi-stage or multi-loop membrane system 

In addition to membrane modules, various types of processing equipment may be required. Examples are feed and recirculation pumps, control valves, heat exchangers. 

There are two distinct modes of liquid filtration. In one, the filter medium sits across the fluid flow channel, so that all of the liquid must pass through the medium, leaving any separated solids to be held in or on the medium. This is called through-flow or dead-end filtration, and it separates most or all of the suspended solids from a more or less completely clarified liquid. 

In the other mode, the flow of suspension is parallel to the medium, and some of the liquid flows through the medium by virtue of there being a pressure difference across it. The remainder of the slurry flows on and out of the filter. Very little of the suspended solid remains on the medium, and the intention is that the flow of liquid across the surface of the medium should indeed keep it scoured free of any deposit. This is called cross-flow filtration (sometimes tangential-flow), and while it can give extremely clear filtrates (in this context usually called permeates), it is only a thickener as far as the slurry is concerned. 

Cross-flow filtration normally employs a surface filtration medium, since any solids moving into the thickness of the medium would not improve the efficiency of the process, and would reduce the active life of the filter medium. This medium is usually (but not always) a membrane, which is why the two topics are covered in this one chapter. (There is also considerable coverage of the membrane and related filters in Section 2F.) 

Cross-flow filtration can be classed as one of a number of thin layer filter systans. It is one of the three main practical filtration processes (the others being cake filtration and depth filtration, with surface straining being a less-used fourth process). 

The VSEP (Vibratory Shear Enhanced Processing) system made by New Logic Research is an example of the vibration technique. It uses a stack of circular membrane discs, each with membrane media on both sides, enclosed in a relatively small housing (over lOOm of membrane area in less than 200 litres of housing volume). The stack is then vibrated torsionally, i.e. in a direction parallel to the discs. 

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Process Concepts. Hybrid systems involving gas-phase adsorption coupled with catalytic processes and with other separations processes (especially distillation and membrane systems) will be developed to take advantage of the unique features of each. The roles of adsorption systems will be to efficiently achieve very high degrees of purification to lower fouUng contaminant concentrations to very low levels in front of membrane and other separations processes or to provide unique separations of azeotropes, close-boiling isomers, and temperature-sensitive or reactive compounds. 

Additionally, there are a number of useful electrochemical reactions for desulfurization processes (185). Solar—thermal effusional separation of hydrogen from H2S has been proposed (188). The use of microporous Vicor membranes has been proposed to effect the separation of H2 from H2S at 1000°C. These membrane systems function on the principle of upsetting equiUbrium, resulting in a twofold increase in yield over equiUbrium amounts. 

A wide range and a number of purification steps are required to make available hydrogen/synthesis gas having the desired purity that depends on use. Technology is available in many forms and combinations for specific hydrogen purification requirements. Methods include physical and chemical treatments (solvent scmbbing) low temperature (cryogenic) systems adsorption on soHds, such as active carbon, metal oxides, and molecular sieves, and various membrane systems. Composition of the raw gas and the amount of impurities that can be tolerated in the product determine the selection of the most suitable process. 

Membrane modules have found extensive commercial appHcation in areas where medium purity hydrogen is required, as in ammonia purge streams (191). The first polymer membrane system was developed by Du Pont in the early 1970s. The membranes are typically made of aromatic polyaramide, polyimide, polysulfone, and cellulose acetate supported as spiral-wound hoUow-ftber modules (see Hollow-FIBERMEMBRANEs). 

PEI derivatives have proven to be effective carriers of cations in Hquid membrane systems (404). This technology led to the development of ion-exchange resins (405), which are also suitable for extracting uranium from seawater (406). 

In the mid-to-late 1980s, growth estimates of the use of polystyrene and polyurethane ceUular plastic insulation materials and products were a healthy 10% per year and greater for phenoHc (40,41). The principal appHcation where strongest growth was forecast for these types was for roofing, especially single-membrane systems (42). 

FoUowiag Monsanto s success, several companies produced membrane systems to treat natural gas streams, particularly the separation of carbon dioxide from methane. The goal is to produce a stream containing less than 2% carbon dioxide to be sent to the national pipeline and a permeate enriched ia carbon dioxide to be flared or reinjected into the ground. CeUulose acetate is the most widely used membrane material for this separation, but because its carbon dioxide—methane selectivity is only 15—20, two-stage systems are often required to achieve a sufficient separation. The membrane process is generally best suited to relatively small streams, but the economics have slowly improved over the years and more than 100 natural gas treatment plants have been installed. 

Membranes. Membranes comprised of activated alumina films less than 20 )J.m thick have been reported (46). These films are initially deposited via sol—gel technology (qv) from pseudoboehmite sols and are subsequently calcined to produce controlled pore sizes in the 2 to 10-nm range. Inorganic membrane systems based on this type of film and supported on soHd porous substrates have been introduced commercially. They are said to have better mechanical and thermal stabiUty than organic membranes (47). The activated alumina film comprises only a miniscule part of the total system (see Mel rane technology). 

Equation 7 shows that as AP — oo, P — 1. The principal advantage of the solution—diffusion (SD) model is that only two parameters are needed to characterize the membrane system. As a result, this model has been widely appHed to both inorganic salt and organic solute systems. However, it has been indicated (26) that the SD model is limited to membranes having low water content. Also, for many RO membranes and solutes, particularly organics, the SD model does not adequately describe water or solute flux (27). Possible causes for these deviations include imperfections in the membrane barrier layer, pore flow (convection effects), and solute—solvent—membrane interactions. 

With or without perforations, may be used with asphalts conforming to Specification D312 requirements in constmction of BUR, and Specification D449 requirements in membrane system of waterproofing. Felts covered by this specification are Type I (No. 15 asphalt felt) and Type II (No. 30 asphalt felt). 

Open-loop systems have inherently long residence times which may be detrimental if the retentate is susceptible to degradation by shear or microbiological contamination. A feed-bleed or closed-loop configuration is a one-stage continuous membrane system. At steady state, the upstream... 

Home desalinators are possible only for industrialized countries with a central service organization. They will eventually become available on a rental/service contract basis, as is standard practice for water softeners in many communities. Although rental of water softeners is common in the United States, home membrane-system rental is not estabUshed. 

The membrane system consists of multiple plate and frame stacks holding the thin-fHm composite membranes clamped together. The system capacity is iacreased by increasing the number of plates. 

The one-pass system consists of a feed tank, filter, pump, and membrane system (Fig. 6). The feed tank contains whiskey at approximately 100° proof. It is filtered through a cellulose filter and then pumped into the membrane system where the separation takes place. Dupont B-10 A ram id hoUow fiber membranes are used in series or parallel and are able to withstand the high pressures, 689—1034 kPa (6.8—10 atm), necessary to achieve separation. 

SBS membrane systems are generally installed in hot asphalt but can be installed using a torch like APP products or in some cold apphcation cement systems. Like APP systems, they are generally installed in multiple layers. The undedayment layers are generally standard BUR felts or basesheets. SBS membrane sheets can also be formulated to be self-adhering. These products are no longer used in membrane appHcations but are used as ice and water dam matedals on the eaves under shingle roofs in cold climates. 

The two most common temporal input profiles for dmg delivery are zero order (constant release), and half order, ie, release that decreases with the square root of time. These two profiles correspond to diffusion through a membrane and desorption from a matrix, respectively (1,2). In practice, membrane systems have a period of constant release, ie, steady-state permeation, preceded by a period of either an increasing (time lag) or decreasing (burst) flux. This initial period may affect the time of appearance of a dmg in plasma on the first dose, but may become insignificant upon multiple dosing. 

William Eykamp, Ph.D., Adjunct Professor of Chemical Engineering, Tufts University Formerly President, Koch Membrane Systems Member, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, American Chemical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, North American Membrane Society, European Society of Membrane Science and Technology (Section 22, Alternative Separation Processes)... 

For the usual case when R = (total retention of the solute), L petm = 0 3.nd combining these equations gives a general expression for flux in a turbulent-flow membrane system. For any given solute concentration ... 

FIG, 22-68 Flow schematic for batch (feed valve closed) or semihatch (feed valve open) operation. (Couttesy Koch Membrane Systems.)... 

FIG, 22-69 Flow schematic for stages-in-series. In operation, the block valves are open. All pump inlets are connected, but in such a way as to prevent feed bypassing a stage. (Coutiesy Koch Membrane Systems. )... 

Membrane System Design Features For the rate process of permeation to occur, there must be a driving force. For gas separations, that force is partial pressure (or fugacity). Since the ratio of the component fluxes determines the separation, the partial pressure of each component at each point is important. There are three ways of driving the process Either high partial pressure on the feed side (achieved by high total pressure), or low partial pressure on the permeate side, which may be achieved either by vacuum or by introduc-... 

FIG. 22-75 Air fractionation by membrane. O2 in retentate as a function of feed fraction passed tbrougb tbe membrane (stage cut) showing tbe different result with changing process paths. Process has shell-side feed at 690 kPa (abs) and 298 K. Module comprised of hollow fibers, diameter 370 im od X 145 im id X 1500 mm long. Membrane properties (X = 5.7 (O2/N2), permeance for O2 = 3.75 X 10 Barrer/cm. Coutiesy Innovative Membrane Systems/ Fraxair)... 

Kev>erse Osmosis (RO) Membranes A type of membrane system for treating oily wastewater is currently undergoing commercialization by Bend Research, Inc. The system uses a tube-side feed module that yields high fluxes while being able to handle high-sohds-content waste streams (Ref. 25). Another type of reverse osmosis technique is being designed to yield ultrapurified HF recovered from... 

This chapter has given an overview of the structure and dynamics of lipid and water molecules in membrane systems, viewed with atomic resolution by molecular dynamics simulations of fully hydrated phospholipid bilayers. The calculations have permitted a detailed picture of the solvation of the lipid polar groups to be developed, and this picture has been used to elucidate the molecular origins of the dipole potential. The solvation structure has been discussed in terms of a somewhat arbitrary, but useful, definition of bound and bulk water molecules. 

Membrane systems consist of membrane elements or modules. For potable water treatment, NF and RO membrane modules are commonly fabricated in a spiral configuration. An important consideration of spiral elements is the design of the feed spacer, which promotes turbulence to reduce fouling. MF and UF membranes often use a hollow fiber geometry. This geometry does not require extensive pretreatment because the fibers can be periodically backwashed. Flow in these hollow fiber systems can be either from the inner lumen of the membrane fiber to the outside (inside-out flow) or from the outside to the inside of the fibers (outside-in flow). Tubular NF membranes are now just entering the marketplace. 

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