California Institute of Technology

The United States of America As Represented by the Administrator of the

Other

William A Mueller

John D Ingham

John J Kalvinskas

James C Fletcher

Shiao-Ping S Yen

George C Hsu

Harold E Marsh, Jr

Jan Harper-Tervet

Warren L Dowler

William W Reilly

The impact resistance of flame retardant composites, especially thermoplastic molding compounds containing over 60% hydrated mineral filler such as Al(OH).sub.3 or Mg(OH).sub.2 is improved by coating the filler with 1 to 20% of an elastomer. The composite will fail by crazing or shearing rather than by brittle fracture. A well bonded elastomeric interphase results by utilizing acidic substituted resins such as ethyl-hexyl acrylate-acrylic acid copolymers which bond to and are cross-linked by the basic filler particles. Further improvement in impact resistance is provided by incorporating 1 to 10% of a resin fiber reinforcement such as polyvinyl alcohol fibers that decompose to yield at least 30% water when heated to decomposition temperature.

Elastomer coated fillers and composites thereof comprising at least 60%

A thin, uniform, firmly adherent coating of metal gasification catalyst is applied to a carbon-graphite fiber by first coating the fiber with a film-forming polymer containing functional moieties capable of reaction with the catalytic metal ions. Multivalent metal cations such as calcium cross-link the polymer such as a polyacrylic acid to insolubilize the film by forming catalytic metal macro-salt links between adjacent polymer chains. The coated fibers are used as reinforcement for resin composites and will gasify upon combustion without evolving conductive airborne fragments.

Coating for gasifiable carbon-graphite fibers

In a raw sewage treatment process of the type where settling tanks are used for the purpose of permitting the suspended matter in the raw sewage to be settled as well as to permit adsorption of the dissolved contaminants in the water of the sewage. The sludge, which settles down to the bottom of the settling tank is extracted, pyrolyzed and activated to form activated carbon and ash which is mixed with the sewage prior to its introduction into the settling tank, for the purposes mentioned. Because the sludge does not provide all of the activated carbon and ash required for adequate treatment of the raw sewage, it is necessary to add carbon to the process. In accordance with this invention, instead of expensive commercial carbon, coal is used to provide the carbon supplement.

Sewage sludge additive

The improved hemodialysis system utilizes a second polymeric membrane having dialyzate in contact with one surface and a urea decomposition solution in contact with the other surface. The membrane selectively passes urea from the dialyzate into the decomposition solution, while preventing passage of positively charged metal ions from the dialyzate into the solution and ammonium ions from the solution into the dialyzate.

Dialysis system

A novel aldehyde-containing polymer (ACP) is prepared by reaction of a polysaccharide with periodate to introduce aldehyde groups onto the C.sub.2 - C.sub.3 carbon atoms and by introduction of ether and ester groups onto the pendant primary hydroxyl to modify solubility characteristics. The ACP is utilized to absorb nitrogen bases such as urea in vitro or in vivo.

Aldehyde-containing urea-absorbing polysaccharides

Raw sewage may be presently treated by mixing screened raw sewage with activated carbon. The mixture is then allowed to stand in a first tank for a period required to settle the suspended matter to the bottom of the tank as a sludge. Thereafter, the remaining liquid is again mixed with activated carbon and the mixture is transferred to a secondary settling tank, where it is permitted to stand for a period required for the remaining floating material to settle as sludge and for adsorption of sewage carbon as well as other impurities to take place. The sludge from the bottom of both tanks is removed and pyrolyzed to form activated carbon and ash, which is mixed with the incoming raw sewage and also mixed with the liquid being transferred from the primary to the secondary settling tank. It has been found that the output obtained by the pyrolysis process contains an excess amount of ash. Removal of this excess amount of ash usually also results in removing an excess amount of carbon thereby requiring adding carbon to maintain the treatment process. By separately pyrolyzing the respective sludges from the first and second settling tanks, and returning the separately obtained pyrolyzed material to the respective first and second tanks from which they came, it has been found that the adverse effects of the excessive ash buildup is minimized, the carbon yield is increased, and the sludge from the secondary tank can be pyrolyzed into activated carbon to be used as indicated many more times than was done before exhaustion occurs.

Growing community of inventors

Glendale, CA, United States of America

William A Mueller