The invention relates to the providing of hydrophobic and hydrophilic polymer-based hollow fiber membranes containing a water-insoluble antioxidant; in particular, the invention relates to the providing of hollow fiber membranes for the extracorporeal treatment of blood, wherein the hollow fiber membranes have improved biocompatibility relative to treatment blood, in particular improved complement activation and lower platelet loss vis-à-vis treatment blood. At the same time, the elution of hydrophilic polymers from the lumen of the hollow fiber membrane is reduced.

A composite semipermeable membrane includes a porous support membrane, a separation functional layer containing a polyamide disposed on the porous support membrane, and a coating layer disposed on the separation functional layer, wherein a water contact angle of a surface of the coating layer is 40° or less, and a protein adsorption force of the surface of the coating layer is 0.4 nN or less.

Water permeable membranes and methods of preparation are described. The water permeable membrane can comprise a porous support, and a polyamide layer comprising a crosslinked polyamide on a surface of the porous support, wherein the polyamide layer further comprises nanoparticles and a hydrophilic additive, and wherein the hydrophilic additive covalently bonds to the crosslinked polyamide. The crosslinked polyamide can be interfacially polymerized on the porous support. Methods for desalinating water, performing dialysis, or performing pervaporation using the water permeable membranes are disclosed.

Disclosed is the preparation of composite membranes formed by a tailored selective chemical modification of an ultra-thin nanoporous surface layer of a semi-crystalline mesoporous poly (aryl ether ketone) membrane with graded density pore structure. The composite separation layer is synthesized in situ on the poly (aryl ether ketone) substrate surface and is covalently linked to the surface of the semi-crystalline mesoporous poly (aryl ether ketone) membrane. Hollow fiber configuration is the preferred embodiment of forming the functionalized the poly (aryl ether ketone) membranes. Composite poly (aryl ether ketone) membranes of the present invention are particularly useful for a broad range of fluid separation applications, including organic solvent ultrafiltration and nanofiltration to separate and recover active pharmaceutical ingredients.

In this disclosure, a process of recycling acid, base and the salt reagents required in the Li recovery process is introduced. A membrane electrolysis cell which incorporates an oxygen depolarized cathode is implemented to generate the required chemicals onsite. The system can utilize a portion of the salar brine or other lithium-containing brine or solid waste to generate hydrochloric or sulfuric acid, sodium hydroxide and carbonate salts. Simultaneous generation of acid and base allows for taking advantage of both chemicals during the conventional Li recovery from brines and mineral rocks. The desalinated water can also be used for the washing steps on the recovery process or returned into the evaporation ponds. The method also can be used for the direct conversion of lithium salts to the high value LiOH product. The method does not produce any solid effluent which makes it easy-to-adopt for use in existing industrial Li recovery plants.

A method for preparing a durably hydrophilic and uniform-pore ultrafiltration membrane is disclosed herein. Chemical reactions between the functional groups and the active bonds of the molecular chains in the membrane materials are initiated perform the grafting of hydrophilic chains on the polymer chains under conventional dissolution conditions of the polymer membrane material (dissolution with synchronized hydrophilization), so as to realize durable hydrophilization of the membrane materials. The resulting hydrophilized polymer solution (a nascent-state membrane) is introduced into a coagulation bath to initiate a crosslinking reaction among the hydrophilic chains. The resulting crosslinking serves to synergistically regulate subsequent phase separation and membrane formation (phase separation under synergistic crosslinking).

A process for the efficient transfer of molecules between phases employing mesoporous poly (aryl ether ketone) hollow fiber membranes is provided. The method addresses the controlled transfer of reactants into and removal of reaction products from a reaction media and the removal and separation of target molecules from process streams by membrane-assisted liquid-liquid extraction. A number of possible modes of liquid-liquid extraction are possible according to the invention by utilizing porous poly (aryl ether ketone) hollow fiber membranes of Janus-like structure that exhibit a combination of hydrophilic and hydrophobic surface characteristics. The method of the present invention can address the continuous manufacture of chemicals in membrane reactors and is useful for a broad range of separation applications, including separation and recovery of active pharmaceutical ingredients.

The invention relates to the providing of hydrophobic and hydrophilic polymer-based hollow fiber membranes containing a water-insoluble antioxidant; in particular, the invention relates to the providing of hollow fiber membranes for the extracorporeal treatment of blood, wherein the hollow fiber membranes have improved biocompatibility relative to treatment blood, in particular improved complement activation and lower platelet loss vis-à-vis treatment blood. At the same time, the elution of hydrophilic polymers from the lumen of the hollow fiber membrane is reduced.

It is provided a water-saturated carbon molecular sieve membrane obtainable by a) providing a hydrophilic carbon molecular sieve membrane (CMSM) comprising pores of a pore size from 0.25 nm to 0.55 nm for molecular sieving, pores of a pore size from 0.55 nm to 0.90 nm for adsorption diffusion and a negligible amount of pores larger than 0.90 nm such that a plot of N.sub.2 permeance versus pressure of permeation at room temperature and at a pressure from 1 to 4 bar has zero or negative slope; and b) humidifying the membrane until obtaining a water-saturated carbon molecular sieve membrane. It is also provided a process for the separation of a gas from a gas mixture with such a water-saturated membrane, and its use for solvent dehydration, and as a membrane reactor.

An ion-exchange apparatus has a raw-water tank 1, a treatment tank 2, an ion exchanger 3 and a voltage applying device E. The raw-water tank 1 contains a to be treated liquid that has impurity ions. The treatment tank 2 contains a treatment material with exchange ions exchangeable with the impurity ions. The ion exchanger 3 enables the passage of the impurity ions from the raw-water tank 1 to the treatment tank 2 and the passage of the exchange ions from the treatment tank 2 to the raw-water tank 1. The voltage-applying device E applies a voltage to the ion exchanger 3.