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Frameless array of hollow fiber membranes and method of maintaining clean fiber surfaces while filtering a substrate to withdraw a permeate

  • US 5,248,424 A
  • Filed: 11/17/1992
  • Issued: 09/28/1993
  • Est. Priority Date: 08/17/1990
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. A membrane device, for withdrawing permeate from a multicomponent liquid substrate, comprising,means for providing an alternative to a conventional module having plural individual arrays therewithin, includinga frameless array of a multiplicity fiber membranes, or fibers, for operation without being supported except by said substrate, and without being confined in a shell of a module, said fibers together having a surface area >

  • 1 m2, said fibers being buoyantly swayable in said substrate, said fibers providing a transmembrane pressure differential in the range from about 0.7 kPa (0.1 psi) to about 345 kPa (50 psi), and each having a length >

    0.5 meter;

    a pair of first and second headers disposed in spaced-apart relationship within said substrate so that said fibers, when deployed, present an arcuate configuration above a horizontal plane through the horizontal center-line of a header;

    said first header having a terminal end portion of each fiber secured therein, and a second header having an opposed terminal end portion of each fiber secured therein, all said fibers extending from a face of each said header and essentially all said fibers being open at their ends so as to discharge said permeate through each of said headers;

    said fibers being sealingly secured with open ends of the fibers secured in fluid-tight relationship with each other in each of said headers;

    liquid collection means to collect said permeate, connected in open fluid communication with said lower face of each of said headers; and

    ,means to withdraw said permeate.

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