An assembly for treating a liquid is provided. The assembly includes a pressure vessel having first and second ends provided with respective first and second endcaps, a membrane element positioned within the pressure vessel, an adapter coupling the first endcap with a first end of the membrane element, a first set of shims positioned between the first endcap and the first adapter, a first thrust collar positioned between the first endcap and the first end of the membrane element, a second thrust collar positioned between the second endcap and a second end of the membrane element, and a second set of shims positioned between the first thrust collar and the first end of the membrane element. An overall thickness of the second set of shims is the same as an overall thickness of the first set of shims.

A spiral wound membrane module has a brackish water RO or NF membrane combined with a permeate carrier having a narrow spacing between membrane contacting elements. The membrane may have water permeability (A-Value) of at least 8*10.sup.−5 cm/s/bar at 25° C. The membrane may have salt diffusion rate (B-Value) of at least 0.5*10.sup.−5 cm/s at 25° C. The permeate carrier may have a density of 54 wales per inch or more of a gap between adjacent ribs of 215 um or less. The permeate carrier may have a channel cross-sectional area of 16*10.sup.−9 m.sup.2 or more. Water is fed to the module at a high feed pressure, for example a pressure of at least 50 bar, optionally up to 120 bar. Retentate may be discharged at a concentration of 100 g/L, 130 g/L, or 150 g/L or more.

The present invention provides a separation membrane that allows a separation functional layer to have less defects and that inhibits a flux of a permeation fluid from decreasing. A separation membrane of the present invention includes a separation functional layer, an interlayer, and a porous support member in this order in a stacking direction. The interlayer has a thickness of 0.1 μm to 2.5 μm. A total value of the thickness of the interlayer and a thickness of the separation functional layer is less than 4.0 μm. The interlayer contains a polymer compound, for example. A distance Ra between a Hansen solubility parameter of the polymer compound and a Hansen solubility parameter of H.sub.2O is less than 19 MPa.sup.1/2, for example.

A blood processing apparatus includes an optional heat exchanger and a gas exchanger disposed within a housing. In some instances, the gas exchanger can include a screen filter spirally wound into the gas exchanger such that blood passing through the gas exchanger passes through the screen filter and is filtered by the spirally wound screen filter a plurality of times.

A blood processing apparatus includes an optional heat exchanger and a gas exchanger disposed within a housing. In some instances, the gas exchanger can include a screen filter spirally wound into the gas exchanger such that blood passing through the gas exchanger passes through the screen filter and is filtered by the spirally wound screen filter a plurality of times.

A system, method and device are disclosed for bio-processing a feed stream and providing a constant output by operating a continuous single-pass tangential-flow process. The single-pass process provides high conversion concentration while operating at relatively low feed flow rates, and the process can also be used to provide constant output diafiltration.

A system, method and device are disclosed for bio-processing a feed stream and providing a constant output by operating a continuous single-pass tangential-flow process. The single-pass process provides high conversion concentration while operating at relatively low feed flow rates, and the process can also be used to provide constant output diafiltration.

Methods of making membrane elements for fluid or gas filtration, comprising applying feed or reject spacers, or intermediate spacers, or fold line protection strips, or end support strips directly to a membrane sheet, or to a substrate material which are subsequently applied to a membrane sheet, which thereby avoids contamination from directly printed adhesives, inks, or polymers, or damage from heat or radiation damage to the membrane sheet during direct application of spacers or patterns to the surface of the membrane sheet, thereby avoiding utilization of conventional feed spacer mesh materials. Membrane sheets and spiral wound filtration elements having spacers applied to defined regions of the sheet, in some embodiments having spacers mounted on substrates with different material properties, e.g., stiffness, than the underlying membrane.

Methods of making membrane elements for fluid or gas filtration, comprising applying feed or reject spacers, or intermediate spacers, or fold line protection strips, or end support strips directly to a membrane sheet, or to a substrate material which are subsequently applied to a membrane sheet, which thereby avoids contamination from directly printed adhesives, inks, or polymers, or damage from heat or radiation damage to the membrane sheet during direct application of spacers or patterns to the surface of the membrane sheet, thereby avoiding utilization of conventional feed spacer mesh materials. Membrane sheets and spiral wound filtration elements having spacers applied to defined regions of the sheet, in some embodiments having spacers mounted on substrates with different material properties, e.g., stiffness, than the underlying membrane.

Disclosed is a high-penetration hot melt adhesive for separation apparatus, such as thin film composite reverse osmosis filtration membranes. Also disclosed is a method of using these hot melt adhesives to bond these membranes to one or more other components of a separation apparatus.