Desalination Systems, Inc.

Pti Advanced Filtration, Inc.

Exxon Research and Engineering Company

Nimbus Water Systems, Inc.

David H Hopkins

Tan-Jen Chen

Donald T Bray

Richard John Basile

Charles P Darnell

Dean L Smith, Jr

John A Simonetti

Burghard H Ruterbories

The present invention is directed to a system and method for removing a first chemical from a web of filtration membrane material using a vacuum roller or other vacuum pressure application device. Embodiments of the method involve applying vacuum pressure to a surface of the membrane web, immersing said membrane web in a flushing chemical and removing the membrane web from the flushing chemical. Embodiments of the system may include one or more vacuum rollers, positioning rollers and a flushing chemical in which a portion of the membrane web may be immersed.

System and method for flushing a membrane web using a vacuum roller

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a membrane assembly useful in an electro-deposition coating system and a method for constructing such a membrane assembly. The membrane assembly may include a membrane sheet, a guide and a frame. In an embodiment of the invention, the membrane assembly may be formed in a tubular shape by ultrasonically welding a membrane sheet along a spiral seam and placing the membrane sheet between a guide and frame formed form extruded net tubing. Alternative embodiments of the invention may incorporate different seam shapes and manufacturing and joining methods.

Enhanced electro-deposition device and method

A sandwich of a permeate fabric material within a folded sheet of semipermeable membrane is spirally wound together with a sheet of porous feed pathway material about a mandrel which, upon its removal, provides a central hollow region in the wound element. A single band of adhesive seals the outer end of the envelope, and once wrapping is completed, a thin layer of porous tape holds the winding tight. A porous small diameter tube is inserted into a pocket adjacent the fold in the semipermeable membrane material near the center of the winding and serves as a permeate discharge conduit. Axial ends of the spirally wound subassembly are sequentially potted in resin to complete the basic fabrication of the element. Communication with the feed pathway material is provided by drilling through the resin into the center hollow region. The spirally wound element can be used as a replacement cartridge for a device having a permanent housing, or it can be integrally bonded within a surrounding pressure vessel assembly to form a disposable water purification unit. Feedwater supplied to the open center region flows spirally outward, while permeating purified water flows spirally inward to the porous tube which serves as a pure water discharge conduit.

Spiral wound separation device and method of making same

A multi-element housing is disclosed for the containment of multiple membrane separation elements in parallel. The multi-element housing is characterized in that the elements are grouped in parallel with a feed/retentate zone, defined by a space enclosed by two tube sheets arranged at the same end of the elements. The central mandrels of the elements pass through the feed/retentate zone space defined by the two tube sheets and empty permeate outside the defined space into a permeate collection zone from which it is removed, while the tube sheet directly attached to the element is in open relationship to the interior of the membrane element and retentate accumulates in the space between the top tube sheet and the bottom tube sheet from which it is removed.

Multi-element housing

A reverse osmosis or ultrafiltration separation device for treating a liquid feed wherein a separation assembly is wound spirally about a central permeate-carrying tube. The assembly includes an elongated semipermeable membrane envelope which includes an interior permeate passageway and feed-passageway-providing sheet material spirally wound with said envelope to supply a liquid feed to be treated. A cylindrical housing of circular cross section having an inlet and a pair of outlets holds the spiral wound separation assembly which is tightly surrounded by a seamless, highly porous, rigid, tubular sleeve proportioned to be snugly received within the cylindrical housing. The sleeve has a predetermined thickness relative to the diameter of the housing chamber so that a desired amount of bypass flow of liquid occurs through the space generally occupied by the sleeve.

Spiral-wound membrane cartridge

A spiral wound membrane cartridge for use in separating a first component from a feed fluid mixture of the first component and the second component. The cartridge includes a permeate collection tube and at least one permeate carrier leaf extending outwardly from the tube. The cartridge further includes at least one sandwich leaf extending outwardly from the tube and including a length of a semipermeable membrane sheet which has an active membrane side and a backing side. This sheet is folded in two, having the fold positioned adjacent the tube and with the membrane sides of the two parts of the folded sheet facing. The sandwich leaf also includes a length of a feed carrier positioned between the two parts of the folded membrane sheet. The sandwich leaf includes a flexible sealer which penetrates and seals the interstices of the backing side in the area of the fold so that, in the event of damage to the membrane side adjacent the fold, the sealer prevents leakage of the feed fluid mixture to the permeate collection tube. Methods of making the sandwich leaf are also disclosed.

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Escondido, CA, United States of America

David H Hopkins