Asahi Kasei Chemicals Corporation

Asahi Kasei Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Asahi Kasei Kabushiki Kaisha

Takahiko Kondo

Takuya Hasegawa

Hidetoshi Masugi

Takashi Nozaki

Daisuke Inagaki

Sho Sugiyama

Masahiro Ohashi

Yoshifumi Nishimura

Naohiro Morimoto

Yoshimichi Mitamura

A gas separation membrane has: a polymeric microporous membrane which has a polyolefin as a main component, and which is manufactured by wet phase separation process, and has a porosity of 20 to 80%, an average pore diameter of 1 to 100 nm and a piercing strength at 100&#xb0; C. of 2 to 50 N; and a gas-separating thin film, which is provided on at least one surface, and/or the interior of the polymeric microporous membrane, and which comprises a fluorine-containing gas-separating resin as a main component, and has an average thickness of 0.01 &#x3bc;m to less than 0.4 &#x3bc;m. The gas separation membrane having an oxygen-nitrogen separation factor not smaller than 1.4.

Gas separation membrane

A gas separator having excellent humidifying performance, pressure loss, volume efficiency, and durability humidifies gases used in an on-vehicle fuel cell. The gas separator has upper and lower surfaces of pleat elements of a pleat molding covered by a plate having intake and exhaust ports. The pleat molding is formed by pleating a compound membrane formed of a gas separating membrane and at least one layer of permeable reinforcement material. The pleat element is formed by disposing a reinforcement frame at the outer side part of the molding. The ratio (R=L/H) of a shortest distance (L) between the intake and exhaust ports to a height (H) of the pleat molding is 0.1 to 7.0, and the ratio (W/Le) of the width (W) to the length (Le) of the pleat molding is 0.3 to 10.0. The gas separator operates at a volume flow ratio of 200 or higher.

Gas separator and operating method for the same

A humidifying apparatus comprising: a pleated functional element comprising a pleated structure and, secured to the pleated structure around a periphery thereof, a reinforcing frame, wherein the pleated structure is comprised of a humidifying membrane and, superimposed on at least one surface thereof, a gas-permeable reinforcing material layer, and a dry-side channel and a wet-side channel which are, respectively, provided on opposite sides of the pleated functional element, wherein each of the dry-side channel and the wet-side channel has at least one pair of a gas-intake and a gas-outlet, the humidifying apparatus having a first pressure-buffering means between the gas-intake and an outside conduit connected thereto and a second pressure-buffering means between the gas-outlet and an outside conduit connected thereto, wherein the humidifying membrane divides the internal space of the pleated functional element into spaces which form a part or whole of the dry-side channel and a part or whole of the wet-side channel, respectively.

Humidifier

A microporous polyolefin film which comprises 5 to 95 wt. % polyethylene (A) having a viscosity-average molecular weight (Mv) of 2,000,000 or higher, a first-melting-peak signal height as determined by DSC (differential scanning calorimetry) of 3.0 mW/mg or higher, a specific surface area of 0.7 m/g or larger, and an average particle diameter of 1 to 150 &#x3bc;m and 95 to 5 wt. % polyethylene (B) having an Mw of 10,000 to 200,000, excluding 10,000 and 200,000, wherein the ratio of the Mv of the compound (A) to that of the compound (B), (A)/(B), is 10 or higher, the film as a whole has a molecular weight of 300,000 to 1,500,000, and the film has a fuse temperature of 120 to 140&#xb0; C., a breaking temperature of 150&#xb0; C. or higher, and a ratio of the piercing strength at 25&#xb0; C. to the piercing strength at 140&#xb0; C. of from 0.01 to 0.25.

Microporous polyolefin film

A microporous polyolefin film that comprises polyethylene and polypropylene as essential components and is composed of a laminate film of two or more layers, wherein the percentage of polypropylene blended in at least one surface layer of the film is more than 50% by weight and 95% by weight or less and the content of polyethylene in the entire film is 50% or more and 95% or less.

A polyethylene microporous film which is composed of a linear copolymeric polyethylene having a melt index (MI) of less than 0.1 and a propylene unit content of 0.1 to 4 mol % and which has a fuse temperature of less than 136&deg; C. A polyethylene microporous film which is composed of a mixture of a linear copolymeric polyethylene having a melt index (MI) of less than 0.1 and a propylene unit content of 0.1 to 4 mol % and a high density polyethylene having a comonomer unit content of less than 0.1 mol %, said mixture having a weight average molecular weight of 250,000 to 700,000 and a propylene unit content of 0.1 to 4 mol %, and which has a fuse temperature of less than 136&deg; C.

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Yokohama, Japan

Takahiko Kondo