Membrane distillation modules using oleophobically and antimicrobially treated microporous membranes
AssigneeBHA Altair, LLC
InventorsVishal Bansal, Christopher Keller
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Abstract
The present invention provides a system for liquid distillation which includes a vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane having structures defining a plurality of pores, an oleophobic material that is applied to the structures of the membrane so as to leave the plurality of pores open, a means for supplying non-distilled liquid to the first side of the membrane, and a means for collecting distilled liquid from a second side of the membrane. In a further example, the present invention provides a method for the distillation of liquids.
Claims14
A system for liquid distillation, the system including:
- a vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane having structures defining a plurality of pores, the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane comprising an anti-microbial material;
- an oleophobic material, the oleophobic material applied to the structures of the microporous membrane so as to leave the plurality of pores open wherein said oleophobic material is a perfluoroalkyl acrylic copolymer;
- wherein the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane has a moisture vapor transmission rate (MVTR) of at least 25,000 grams/m2/day determined by JISL-1099B2 testing
- means for supplying non-distilled liquid to the first side of the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane;
- and
- means for collecting distilled liquid from a second side of the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane.
A method for the distillation of liquids including:
- providing a system including:
- a vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane, a means for supplying non-distilled liquid to the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane, and a means for collecting distilled liquid from a second side of the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane;
- applying an anti-microbial material to the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane;
- applying an oleophobic material to the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane wherein said oleophobic material is a perfluoroalkyl acrylic copolymer;
- and wherein the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane has a moisture vapor transmission rate (MVTR) of at least 25,000 grams/m2/day determined by JISL-1099B2 testing;
- supplying the non-distilled liquid to the first side of the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane;
- and
- collecting the distilled liquid from the second side of the vapor permeable-liquid impermeable microporous membrane.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.