Flat membrane element and regeneration method thereof

• US 7,604,130 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2006
• Issued: 10/20/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Plant Technologies Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Fujimoto, Takashi, Tagashira, Tatsuaki, Hatanaka, Mitsuru, Noto, Kazuhiko, Takemura, Kiyokazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Menon; Krishnan S
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kurtz; Benjamin
• Application Number:
  US11/640,314
• Publication Number:
  US 20070158254A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,037 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 210/490
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 2313/04 Specific sealing means
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 2321/00 Details relating to membrane cleaning, regeneration, sterilization or to the prevention of fouling
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 63/081 Manufacturing thereof
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 65/003 Membrane bonding or sealing
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 65/02 Membrane cleaning or sterilisation ; Membrane regeneration

Abstract

To reuse support plate and to fix a membrane sheet by the same method both in a new product manufacturing and in regeneration. In a flat membrane element including a deposit fixed portion formed by lapping a membrane sheet performing solid-liquid separation onto a support plate supporting the membrane sheet and by emitting a laser to a circumferential edge of the membrane sheet to deposit fix the member sheet onto the support plate, and making an inside of the membrane sheet surrounded by the deposit fixed portion be a solid-liquid separating area; an embrocation having laser absorption property is applied on the surface of the membrane sheet of the deposit fixed portion. At the time of regeneration, such a portion of the membrane sheet that corresponds to the solid-liquid separating area is cut off and, after that, a new membrane sheet is lapped on the embrocation and the new membrane sheet and the embrocation are deposit fixed by a laser.

Claims

1. A solid-liquid separation flat membrane element, comprising:

a membrane sheet for filtration, the membrane sheet comprising a synthetic resin material;

a support plate having a first and a second surface, the membrane sheet being attached onto the first surface;

a deposit fixed portion formed by laser deposition of a circumferential edge of said membrane sheet and said support plate, which are lapped upon each other; and

an embrocation having a laser absorption property and being applied on the surface of the deposit fixed portion, the embrocation comprising a same synthetic resin material as of said membrane sheet, and a pigment mixed therein.

2. The flat membrane element according to claim 1, further comprising:

a second membrane sheet attached onto the second surface of said support plate.