Microfiltration from solids

Phase Separation. Microporous polymer systems consisting of essentially spherical, intercoimected voids, with a narrow range of pore and ceU-size distribution have been produced from a variety of thermoplastic resins by the phase-separation technique (127). If a polyolefin or polystyrene is insoluble in a solvent at low temperature but soluble at high temperatures, the solvent can be used to prepare a microporous polymer. When the solutions, containing 10—70% polymer, are cooled to ambient temperatures, the polymer separates as a second phase. The remaining nonsolvent can then be extracted from the solid material with common organic solvents. These microporous polymers may be useful in microfiltrations or as controlled-release carriers for a variety of chemicals. 

Pharmaceutical Removal of suspended matter is a frequent application for MF. Processes may be either clarification, in which the main product is a clarified liquid, or solids recovery. Separating cells or their fragments from broth is the most common application. Clarification of the broth in preparation for product recovery is the usual objective, but the primary goal may be recovery of cells. Cross-flow microfiltration competes w l with centrifugation, conventional filtration by rotary vacuum filter or filter press and decantation. MF delivers a cleaner permeate, an uncontaminated, concentrated cell product... 

Process Description Gas-separation membranes separate gases from other gases. Some gas filters, which remove liquids or solids from gases, are microfiltration membranes. Gas membranes generally work because individual gases differ in their solubility and diffusivity through nonporous polymers. A few membranes operate by sieving, Knudsen flow, or chemical complexation. 

Cross-flow filters behave in a way similar to that normally observed in crossflow filtration under ambient conditions increased shear-rates and reduced fluid-viscosity result in an increased filtrate number. Cross-microfiltration has been applied to the separation of precipitated salts as solids, giving particle-separation efficiencies typically exceeding 99.9%. Goemans et al. [30] studied sodium nitrate separation from supercritical water. Under the conditions of the study, sodium nitrate was present as the molten salt and was capable of crossing the filter. Separation efficiencies were obtained that varied with temperature, since the solubility decreases as the temperature increases, ranging between 40% and 85%, for 400 °C and 470°C, respectively. These workers explained the separation mechanism as a consequence of a distinct permeability of the filtering medium towards the supercritical solution, as opposed to the molten salt, based on their clearly distinct viscosities. 

Ultrafiltration and microfiltration can be backwashed occasionally to remove accumulated solids from membranes. UF and MF membranes may be used to remove micrometer-sized and upper suspended particles, namely bacteria, algae, and so on, they can also be used to remove Guardia and Cryptosporidium, as well as most viruses found in surface water. In fact, the solid layer ( cake ) adhering to the membranes in the latter two techniques acts like a dynamic membrane [8, 9], removing smaller particles even at colloidal and virus levels. 

Microporous membranes can be used in a manner similar to reverse osmosis to selectively allow small solute molecules and/or solvents to pass through the membrane and to prevent large dissolved molecules and suspended solids from passing through. Microfiltration refers to the retention of molecules typically in the size range from 0.05 to 10 pm. Ultrafiltration refers to the range from 1 to 100 nm. To retain even smaller molecules, reverse osmosis, sometimes called hyperfiltration, can be used down to less than 2 nm. 

In contrast to dead-end microfiltration, which could also be used to remove solids from spent electrolytes producing (after addition of a solvent and at elevated temperatures) an ionic liquid as residue, the residue in the extractive regeneration is wet sludge only. 

Primary recovery of the active ingredient from the solid or liquid phase to remove large quantities of unwanted waste materials, which may themselves be processed further. Suitable techniques include solvent extraction, precipitation by chemical or physical changes to the product-containing solution, and ultrafiltration or microfiltration to separate products above a particular size. Work done on combined biomass separation-primary product recovery processes such as expanded-bed adsorption are now being commercialized in the pharmaceutical industry. 

Ceramic membranes are quite important since microporous ceramics are the principal barrier in UFe separation. Similar devices are used for microfiltration membranes and to a lesser extent for ultrafiltration. Homogeneous films are transformed into microporous devices by irradiation followed by selective leaching of the radiation damaged tracks, by stretching (Cortex is one welldmown example), or by electrochemical attack on aluminum. A few membranes are made by selective leaching of one component from a solid, as in membranes derived from glass or by selective extraction of polymer blends. 

The most common sort of embodiment involving a liquid phase is the membrane separation of suspended solids from liquids, denoted variously by the terms filtration, microfiltration, and ultrafiltration, depending on the particle size, and which may include colloidal suspensions and emulsions. The solid particulates, for the most part, are deposited in the interstices or pores of a membrane barrier, and accordingly will require an intermittent backflushing operation. 

Separation of manufactured sohds from process liquids and recycling of these liquids (water or organic solvents) is an interesting way to valorize by-products and to minimize the production of liquid effluents in a number of industries. Microfiltration ceramic membranes have been aheady used for the recovery of particles in the ceramic industry and in drilling operations, of pigments in paint and ink industries, and have potential applications in a wide variety of liquid-solid separation... 

Sedimentation and/or filtration (26,28) will be feasible for separating the insoluble chromium hydroxide precipitates (or chemical floes) from a wastewater. Other feasible solid-water separation processes for removing the insoluble chromium hydroxide include membrane filtration (such as ultrafiltration and microfiltration), continuous DAF, PC-SBR-sedimentation, PC-SBR-DAF. The following is a summary of the solid-water separation processes feasible for the combined application of chemical reduction and precipitation. 

Test results starting from pig manure with a solids content of ca. 11% a vibrating screen separates this into a feed stream for the microfiltration containing 6% solids. On this feed, HIC s ceramic 0.1 im membranes reach average fluxes of 80-100 1/m h at filtration temperatures of 80°C. The concentration factor can range between 2.5 and 3. Operating costs are below the DEM 20/m quoted by Meindersma [24]. The combined concentrate of pre-filter and MF is about 55% of the original volume and contains approximately 20% solids the clear permeate of the MF contains approximately 2% solids, typically dissolved substances. 

MicrofQtration with 0.2 im ceramic membranes (HIC) yields average fluxes of 125-150 1/m h at temperatures from 40 to 70°C. Suspended solids and concentration of hydrocarbons are both reduced to less than 10 ppm in the permeate. By RO the COD is reduced to below 100 mg/1. Cleaning interval for the microfiltration installation is once a week. The feed to the microfiltration system has to be filtered over 100 pm screens to prevent clogging of the equipment. 

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