A cartridge type hollow fiber membrane module including a housing, a hollow-fiber membrane bundle having a plurality of hollow fiber membranes, a first potting part that bonds the hollow fiber membranes at at least one end of the bundle of the plurality of hollow fiber membranes such that the hollow fiber membranes are open, and a sealing material that fixes the first potting part to the housing liquid-tightly, wherein the first potting part comprises an inner potting part and an outer potting part, wherein the inner potting part and the outer potting part are both formed of a potting material, wherein the sealing material is in contact with the outer potting part, and wherein both the inner potting part and the outer potting part are formed in a sealing direction of the sealing material. The cartridge type hollow fiber membrane module is free of leakage and contamination due to separation of a potting material even when steam sterilization is performed.

A method is provided for sanitizing a reverse osmosis system to supply high-purity permeate. Included in the method is supplying raw water to a feed tank and to a filter module using a raw-water inlet line having an inlet valve. A primary circuit is provided, and has a first pump connected to the filter module. A secondary circuit is provided, and has a second pump and a heater, both of which are connected to the filter module. The primary circuit is separated from the secondary circuit using a semipermeable membrane disposed in the filter module. The secondary circuit of the reverse osmosis system is cleaned or disinfected while the raw-water inlet line is in a disconnected state and the inlet valve is in a closed state using the second pump and the heater.

A reverse osmosis system comprises a permeate collection tube which is connected at one end to a distribution system for permeate which comprises at least one device for cleaning and/or disinfection. The permeate collection tube, the cleaning and/or disinfection device and a circulation pump are arranged in a circulation circuit.

The inventions discloses a method for reducing fouling on the surface of a ceramic membrane or filter with a recalcitrant filtration cake thereon that is non-responsive to regular back-flushing or other physical means of removal, where the ceramic membrane or filter is subjected to steam fast-flushing by injecting steam directly in feed channel of the ceramic membrane or filter while back-flushing the ceramic membrane or filter at the same time to heat and remove fouled layer on the ceramic membrane or filter while cooling a selective layer of the ceramic membrane or filter to avoid thermal shocking of the ceramic membrane or filter, the surface is cleaned with the ceramic membrane or filter being stationary.

A membrane system including an anti-fouling layer and a method of applying an anti-fouling layer to a membrane surface are provided. In an embodiment, the surface is a microfiltration (MF) or an ultrafiltration (UF) membrane surface. The anti-fouling layer can include a stimuli responsive layer and a dynamic protective layer applied over the stimuli responsive layer that can be a coating on a surface of the membrane. The stimuli responsive polymer layer can act as an adhesive prior to coating with the dynamic protective layer to aid in adhering the dynamic protective layer to the membrane surface. The dynamic protective layer can be formed by suitable nanoparticles that can prevent adhesion of foulants directly to the membrane surface. The stimuli responsive layer can be responsive to physio-chemical stimuli to cause a release of the stimuli responsive layer and the dynamic protective layer including foulants from the membrane.

A method of producing a sugar liquid includes filtering a cellulose-derived sugar liquid through one or more separation membranes selected from the group consisting of an ultrafiltration membrane, a nanofiltration membrane and a reverse osmosis membrane and washing the separation membrane(s) after filtration with washing water containing an alkaline substance and an aromatic compound at 10? C. or more and less than 50? C.

Provided is a reverse osmosis membrane cleaning apparatus (10) which includes a membrane module (1) including a reverse osmosis membrane, a cleaning water tank (11) which stores cleaning water, a heater (13) which heats cleaning water supplied from the cleaning water tank (11) to the reverse osmosis membrane, and a temperature control device (17) which controls the heater so that a temperature of the cleaning water heated by the heater (13) is higher than 45? C. and not higher than 60? C.

A conditioning system for a filter module is disclosed. The conditioning system may generally include an inlet, a heat exchanger, a magnetically levitated pump, a channel provided to bypass the heat exchanger, a controller, an outlet, and a base. The system may have components lined with corrosion-resistant materials. A method of conditioning a filter module is also disclosed. The method may generally include measuring TOC in a source of ultrapure water, heating the ultrapure water, rinsing a filter module with the heated water, flushing the filter module with ambient temperature water, and repeating the rinsing with heated water and flushing with ambient temperature water. A method of facilitating conditioning of the filter module is also disclosed. The method may generally include providing a portable filter module conditioning system and providing instructions for installation or use.

Disclosed herein is a water purification apparatus capable of being cleaned at a point of care, and methods for cleaning the water purification apparatus at the point of care. The water purification apparatus and the methods provide an efficient use of a heater for heat disinfection the water purification apparatus, e.g. by recirculating heated fluid to further heat the fluid. Several different cleaning programs are provided that may be utilized for cleaning different parts of the water purification apparatus.

A method and a composition of cleaning and reprocessing a hemodialysis filtration membrane assembly that employs polyvinylpyrrolidone-containing membranes, the method comprising the step of treating the assembly with an aqueous mixture or a gas-liquid mixture comprising an inorganic base and from 100 to 1,000 ppm of a hypochlorite salt, wherein the mixture has a pH between about 12.0 and about 12.5, an oxidation reduction potential of less than 0.5 volts, a temperature of 40 to 55 C. and wherein the mole % of hypochlorous acid, HOCl, relative to the sum of hypochlorous acid plus hypochlorite anion, OCl, is less than 0.004%.