Membrane with surface channels
AssigneePall Corporation
InventorsGregory S. Carpenter, Munaf Tinwala, Stanley W. Kidd
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Membranes having parallel channels in a surface of the membranes, wherein the channels have side walls having rough surfaces; filters and devices including at least one membrane, and methods of making and using the membranes, are disclosed.
Claims20
A microporous polymeric membrane comprising
- (a) a first surface, comprising a microporous surface,
- (b) a second surface comprising a microporous surface;
- and
- (c) a microporous bulk between the first surface and the second surface;
- wherein the membrane has a machine direction and a cross machine direction, and the first surface has a plurality of parallel channels in the machine direction, wherein the channels have side walls and bottom walls, the side walls comprising rough surfaces, the rough surfaces having an Ra in the range of from about 4.5 μin to about 19.0 μin.
A method of removing undesirable material from a fluid, the method comprising passing the fluid from a first surface of a microporous membrane through a second surface of the membrane, the first surface comprising a microporous surface, the second surface comprising a microporous surface;
- the membrane having a microporous bulk between the first surface and the second surface;
- wherein the membrane has a machine direction and a cross machine direction, and the first surface has a plurality of parallel channels in the machine direction, wherein the channels have side walls and bottom walls, the side walls comprising rough surfaces, the rough surfaces having an Ra in the range of from about 4.5 μin to about 19.0 μin.
A method of preparing a membrane comprising:
- obtaining a substrate comprising a surface having a machine direction and a cross machine direction and having parallel abrasions in the surface in the machine direction, the parallel abrasions having a depth having an Rz value in the range of from about 50 μin to about 175 μin;
- casting a polymeric solution on the surface;
- effecting phase separation of the solution and forming a microporous membrane;
- and,
- peeling the membrane from the substrate, wherein portions of the membrane contacting the parallel abrasions in the surface of the substrate are pulled away from the membrane, forming a membrane having a surface with parallel channels in the machine direction, wherein the channels have side walls and bottom walls, the side walls comprising rough surfaces, the rough surfaces having an Ra in the range of from about 4.5 μin to about 19.0 μin.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.