Hollingsworth & Vose Company

W. R. Grace Co.

W. R. Grace Co.-conn.

Entegris, Inc.

Daramic, Inc.

Other

Kvg Technologies, Inc.

Wai Ming Choi

Karin N Soper

James K Kung

Richard E Gahan

Jad Ali Jaber

Dennis D O'Rell

Saksatha Ly

Vinay Goel

Nan J Lin

Abbas Samii

Richard T Giovannoni

Norman Lifshutz

Anthony Dennis

Anthony L Ferreira

Vinay Kalyani

Ingo W Schmidt

Werner Boehnstedt

Described is a polyethylene membrane and in particular an ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene member that provides a high air permeability and is hydrophobic. The membranes have small pores and are suitable for sterilization by exposure to gamma radiation. The membranes can be made by methods that involve one or more of stretching the membrane and grafting hydrophobic monomers onto the membrane surface. A perfluorinated monomer, such as perfluoro-n-octyl acrylate, can be grafted to one or more surfaces of the membrane. The membrane have a high flow rate compared to unstretched or ungrafted membranes.

Hydrophobic polyethylene membrane for use in venting, degassing, and membrane distillation processes

A purifier for removing metal, such as chromium, from an organic solvent is disclosed. The purifier comprises a housing having a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet in fluid communication with the fluid inlet; a volume of ion-exchange resin disposed within the housing downstream of the fluid inlet; and a filtration member downstream of the volume of ion-exchange resin, the filtration member comprising at least one microporous membrane having a substantially neutral surface and a microporous polytetrafluoroethylene membrane downstream of the at least one microporous membrane. A method for removing metal, including chromium, from an organic solvent using a purifier of the invention is also disclosed.

Organic solvent purifier and method of using

Filter media are provided having improved conductivity to enhance filtration efficiency and/or dissipate static charge, and methods for making the same. In one exemplary embodiment, the filter media can include a filtration substrate, and at least one conductive coating disposed on at least a portion of the filtration substrate. In use, the conductive coating is coupled to an energy source and it is effective to emit ions when energy is delivered thereto to increase the efficiency of the filtration substrate and/or to dissipate or eliminate static charge generated during filtration.

Filter media with improved conductivity

Gel-forming battery separators and methods for constructing them. Particles are embedded into pores of a porous support to form a composite. The chemical make-up of surfaces of the particles includes a silanol group. The composite, when contacted with an effective amount of liquid electrolyte, is capable of forming a gelled matrix that includes electrolyte residing within the porous support. Batteries and methods of forming batteries featuring gel-forming separators are also disclosed. No pre-mixing of siliceous material with electrolyte is required facilitating battery construction.

Gel-forming battery separator

A non-woven sheet of polyolefin fibers having opposed major surfaces is disclosed. Some areas of one or both of the major surfaces are hydrophilic as a consequence of an acrylic graft polymerized with the surfaces of the fibers in those areas while the fibers in other areas of that major surface are free of the graft and, as a consequence, remain hydrophobic. A battery separator composed of at least two such non-woven sheets is also disclosed, as well as batteries having a separator composed of at least one such non-woven sheet. Also disclosed is a non-woven sheet of polyolefin fibers where opposed major surfaces of the sheet are hydrophilic as a consequence of such an acrylic acid graft, but the ion exchange coefficients of the two major surfaces are different.

Graft polymerization, separators, and batteries including the separators

A vapor phase treated electret filter media includes an additive or mixtures thereof that enhance the charge stability of the media. The filter media achieves acceptable alpha values for a range of filtration challenges without significant decay in alpha values over time. Preferred charge additives include fatty acid amides and mixtures thereof. Exemplary vapor phase deposition monomers include fluorinated monomers.

Vapor deposition treated electret filter media

Battery separator

A method for producing an acrylic graft polymer on the surface of a polyolefin article is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of immersing the polyolefin article in a solution of a photoinitiator in a volatile solvent, allowing the volatile solvent in the photoinitiator solution to vaporize, immersing the polyolefin article in a solution of an acrylic monomer, and subjecting the polyolefin article, while in a suitable atmosphere, which can be air or can be inert, to ultraviolet irradiation to cause the acrylic monomer to graft to the polyolefin surface. A method which involves subjecting a polyolefin article to corona discharge, immersing the article, after corona discharge treatment, in a solution of a photoinitiator and an acrylic monomer in a volatile solvent, and subjecting the article to ultra violet irradiation to cause the acrylic monomer to graft to the polyolefin surface is also disclosed. The latter method improves the ammonia trapping capacity of the grafted article.

A battery separator having sodium sulfate incorporated therein in order to reduce and/or eliminate hydration short problems in batteries. The preferred method of adding sodium sulfate directly to the separator is via the use of sodium sulfate-containing silica as a separator filler added during the process of manufacturing the separator. The present invention is also directed to a battery separator containing a relatively high level of sodium sulfate, and to batteries which incorporate such separators.

Battery separator with sodium sulfate

A battery separator for tubular positive electrodes composed of a microporous, composite sheet product having first and second major surface, formed from a uniform mixture of a polymer, a filler, a processing aid a porous form stable layer at least partially embedded in either the first or second major surface and having a series of vertical tubes arranged across its surface. The tubular sleeve/separator can be formed of individual tubes, flat sheets formed into a series of tubes or sheets containing half tubes and which are aligned and bonded together to form the series of tubes.

Composite gauntlet/separator

A battery separator formed into an envelope and having improved oxidation resistance is disclosed. The sealed edge along the bottom of the envelope and preferably also along the vertical side edges of the envelope has a greater amount of a processing aid, such that the treated area has from a 5 to 100%, preferably 5 to 20% and more preferably 10 to 100% greater amount of processing aid than the average of the rest of the envelope. One embodiment is to impregnate the treated area with additional processing aid. One embodiment is to impregnate the treated area with additional processing aid. A further embodiment is impregnate a porous layer with additional processing aid and locate that porous layer adjacent and preferably in intimate contact with the treated edge. A third embodiment is to add an amount of processing aid into the battery box before inserting the enveloped plates and allowing the envelopes to absorb the aid.

Oxidation resistant enveloped separator

A battery separator for use in deep cycle traction batteries, such as golf cart batteries. The separator is formed of a microporous, mainly polymeric layer, preferably in the form of a synthetic paper; a glass mat layer adjacent one surface of the microporous layer; and a coating on one or both sides of the mircoporous layer/glass mat combination. The coating is preferably formed of natural rubber which positively affects top-of-charge behavior and reduces the possibility of antimony poisoning, thus providing for longer and improved battery performance and life.

Deep cycle battery separators

The present invention is a sheet material for use in alkaline batteries as a separator or interseparator. The sheet is formed of about 30 to about 70 percent polyolefin synthetic pulp, from about 15 to about 65 percent alkali resistant inorganic filler and from about 1 to about 35 percent of one or more long fibers, wherein at least some, if not all of the fiber is a water swellable polyvinyl alcohol based fiber and any remaining long fiber is a nonwater swellable fiber. The water swellable fiber during processing of the sheet forms a gel-like network when contacted by water which retains the filler and bonds the remaining materials together. The resulting sheet has increased tensile strength and alkali resistance and is especially useful in automated battery manufacturing processes.

Growing community of inventors

West Newton, MA, United States of America

Wai Ming Choi