摘要:
A method of potting hollow fibre membranes (12) into a mass of solidified potting liquid comprises the steps of providing a plurality of hollow fibre membranes having terminal portions (12") adjacent open ends; enclosing the open ends and terminal portions of the hollow fibre membranes in a first material held in a container (20); flowing a potting liquid in the container over the first material, which potting liquid surrounds each hollow membrane and then becomes a solid mass which provides a fluid-tight seal to the outside of the hollow fibre membranes, the first material preventing the potting liquid or solid mass from closing said ends of the membranes; and removing the first material from said ends and terminal portions of the hollow fibre membranes. The method is applicable in particular to potting a plurality of hollow fibre membranes into a mass of solidified potting liquid fixed to a permeate pan (20;120) or other header enclosure of a filtration module.
摘要:
A filtering element has ultrafiltration or microfiltration hollow fiber membranes extending horizontally between a pair of opposed horizontally spaced, vertically extending headers. Side plates extending between the pair of vertically extending headers define a vertical flow channel through the element. Modules are created by placing the elements in place without obstructing the vertical flow channels. Each element may be released from the frame, however, and removed by sliding it in a direction substantially normal to its headers without disassembling the remainder of the module. The elements have associated releasable water tight fittings between the elements and a permeate collector, the releasable water tight fittings being releasable by removing an element from the frame. An aerator below the module has a plurality of air holes located to provide a line of air holes below each element or below a side plate between each pair of elements. In a preferred process, permeate flux is less than 50 L/m /h and preferably less than 35 L/m /h, aeration to scrub the membranes is provided during periods of time when permeation is periodically stopped and accumulated solids are removed by periodically emptying and refilling a tank containing the elements. A bubble point test is applied to each row of the module in turn, the presence of bubbles in a particular flow channel indicating which, if any, elements of a row are suitable.
摘要:
A hollow fiber membrane ("fiber") comprises a tubular macroporous support (31) coated on its outer surface with a thin tubular asymmetric semipermeable film (33) of polymer. The film, by itself, is non-self-supporting. The support (31) itself is so flexible (flaccid) that it does not have a circular cross section and collapses with finger pressure. Such a tube of knitted or woven braid no greater than 2.5 mm o.d., having interstitial voids which are non-uniformly shaped by the "ends" which are braided, is coated with a "dope" of polymer, then coagulated in a bath to form the film. Yet, after coating, the braided membrane can withstand up to 1500 psig in hydraulic compression forces before a straight-line relationship between flux and pressure begins to flatten out. The voids are relatively much larger than pores in the film. These voids are small enough to inhibit substantial penetration of the dope which lies superficially supported on the upper portion of the braid. Viewed in an elevational cross-sectional view looking down the longitudinal axis of the dope-coated braid, the dope extends over less than 33 % of the outer portion of the braid's cross-sectional area. This thin coating of dope is made possible by a unique coating nozzle having sequential rounding and sizing orifices through which the braid is advanced by pulling it without unduly distorting the shapes of the voids in the braid. The shapes and sizes of the braid are thus retained except that the braid is distended into an essentially circular shape because of the tensile forces exerted by the coagulating dope. Hollow fiber membranes made as disclosed herein are used to make fluid-fluid separations, the braid and film being tailored to the purpose at hand.
摘要:
A filtration membrane for micro- or ultra-filtration is formed from a complex of PVDF and calcined α-alumina ('α-Al') particles, in which complex the particles are reacted and dispersed. The suspended complex is then mixed with a hydrophilic polymer such as polyvinyl alcohol (40 % - 90 % hydrolyzed) referred to herein as HPVA, which reacts with the complex imparting hydrophilicity to the polymer. The novel membrane provides about 50 % higher specific flux than a membrane made with the same polymer but without the α-Al particles. Unexpectedly, the net flux is improved by treating the membrane with a solution of sodium hypochlorite which fails to remove the HPVA from the novel membrane but does remove it from the prior art membrane which does not contain the α-Al. The preferred membrane comprises a macroporous support coated on its outer surface with a thin tubular asymmetric semipermeable film of polymer containing less than about 50 % by weight of α-Al particles.
摘要:
A method of purifying impure water to provide drinking water using an apparatus, the method comprising the steps of providing a microfiltration unit, a reverse osmosis unit and a CIP (clean-in-place) tank containing retentate interconnected to permit backflushing the microfiltration filter with retentate and continued or uninterrupted operation of the reverse osmosis unit by directing retentate thereto.
摘要:
A wastewater feed containing an ultimate BOD/COD ratio > 0.6 is well-suited for especially acclimated thermophilic and/or caldo-active living micro-organisms ("hot cells") which thrive in an autothermal aerobic (ATA) reaction zone having an ATA bioreactor ("ATAB") operating at substantially ambient atmospheric pressure in combination with a MF or UF membrane filtration device from which a solids-free permeate may be withdrawn. This combination, of ATAB and membrane device is a "membrane bioreactor" (ATA MBR), which operates autothermally with a feed containing biodegradable organic materials having a BOD of at least 5,000 mg/L, preferably at least 10,000 mg/L (10 g/L) with a minor portion of "municipal" wastewater or domestic sewage. Operation of the ATAB, preferably in the thermophilic range from 45°C - 75°C, with constant HRT from 1 to 12 days, is contingent upon maintaining a stable population of live hot cells. Such cells enhance the biokinetics of degradation and allow operation of the ATAB at higher COD loading and a lower concentration of TSS, than would be possible at a lower temperature. A surprisingly high membrane productivity allows production of much less sludge to be disposed of outside the system, than would have to be disposed of with a conventional mesophilic reactor in normal operation with a HRT of less than 24 hr. A combination of an MP MBR with an ATA MBR is highly effective when the MPB produces high BOD concentration mixed liquor for destruction by the ATAB.
摘要:
A tubular module is disclosed for use as a membrane device, comprising, a shell with fluid couplings removably affixed to each of its ends and at least one non-disassemblable cartridge operably held within the shell. The cartridge is constructed from plural wafers sequentially coaxially aligned, each wafer consisting essentially of a generally planar frame and an array of hollow fibers of selectively permeable material adhesively held by their ends in opposed portions of the border of the frame, without potting the ends. Several cartridges may be coaxially "ganged" to provide a "stack" with the required filtration area. The cartridges may be removably disposed in the shell, or secured therein so that the entire module may be discarded when its efficiency is unacceptably low. The wafers are adhesively secured to define a fluid-tight conduit with open ends through which a feedstream is flowed transversely over the fibers. The bores of the fibers are in open fluid communication with the permeate zone in the shell. A frame of a wafer may be provided with longitudinal, laterally spaced apart grooves in its upper surface and the fibers trained in the grooves. A cartridge may be made by precoating a first frame with adhesive, embedding the fibers in the adhesive, initially curing the adhesive and then placing a second frame over the partially cured adhesive ; and, repeating the steps. Alternatively, the second frame may be positioned over the embedded fibers on the first frame and the adhesive then cured. The arrays lie in a plane substantially orthogonal to the direction of flow of a feedstream to be treated, and fibers of one array are staggered relative to those in a successive array.