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US 7,866,637 B2Granted
Humidifying apparatus, lithographic apparatus and humidifying method
AssigneeASML Netherlands B.V.
InventorAntonius Johannus Van Der Net
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Abstract
A humidifying apparatus is disclosed in which gas is provided to a first side of a membrane and liquid to a second side of the same membrane. The membrane is non-porous to the liquid but porous to vapor of the liquid and is liquidphilic to said liquid.
Claims27
A humidifying apparatus comprising:
- a membrane;
- a first conduit configured to flow gas onto one side of said membrane;
- a second conduit configured to flow liquid onto the other side of said membrane;
- and
- a pre-humidifier apparatus, other than the membrane, configured to pre-humidify the gas for said one side upstream of said first conduit,
- wherein said membrane has a surface which is liquidphilic to said liquid, and, in use, behaves in a non-porous manner with regard to said liquid such that the liquid does not enter the membrane, and in a porous manner with regard to the vapour of said liquid.
3 more elements
A method of humidifying gas comprising:
- flowing a liquid onto one side of a membrane which membrane is liquidphilic to said liquid, and, in use, behaves in a non-porous manner with regard to said liquid such that the liquid does not enter the membrane, and in a porous manner with regard to the vapour of said liquid;
- and
- flowing a gas to be humidified onto the other side of said membrane, wherein said gas provided to said other side of said membrane is pre-humidified by an apparatus other than said membrane prior to being provided to said other side of said membrane.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.