A method and apparatus for the treatment of wastewater streams to form purified water and a mineral-containing by-product. The wastewater stream may be a brine or produced water from an oil/gas extraction operation. The method includes passing the wastewater stream through a membrane assembly having a pervaporation membrane, whereby purified water vapor is collected from the permeate side of the membrane. A mineral-rich product may be recovered from the retentate, and/or a mineral-rich crystalline phase may deposit on the membrane and may be recovered as a solid from the membrane or may be washed off the membrane and collected.

An air-impermeable water vapor transport membrane comprises an active layer on a microporous polymeric substrate. The active layer comprises a polyethylene-oxide containing copolymer and a polar protic solvent in an amount of about 3% to about 100% of copolymer weight in the active layer. Molecules of the protic solvent are bonded to the copolymer. The polar protic solvent reduces temperature-dependent variability in the water-vapor permeability of the membrane.

A method of separately producing tert-butanol and sec-butanol, comprising the steps of introducing a mixed butenes stream to a tube side of a reaction membrane unit, introducing a TBA reactor water feed to the tube side of the reaction membrane unit, introducing a sweep gas to a shell side of the reaction membrane unit, introducing an SBA reactor water feed to the shell side, allowing the mixed butenes stream to contact the tube side of a such that selective gases in the mixed butenes stream permeate through the membrane to the shell side, allowing the selective gases that permeate through the membrane to react with water to produce sec-butanol, allowing retentate gases that fail to permeate through the membrane to react with water to produce tert-butanol, collecting the tert-butanol in a TBA reactor effluent, and collecting the sec-butanol in a SBA reactor effluent.

A composite membrane for selectively separating (e.g., pervaporating) a first fluid (e.g., first liquid) from a mixture comprising the first fluid (e.g., first liquid) and a second fluid (e.g., second liquid). The composite membrane includes a porous substrate comprising opposite first and second major surfaces, and a plurality of pores. A pore-filling polymer is disposed in at least some of the pores so as to form a layer having a thickness within the porous substrate. The composite membrane further includes at least one of: (a) an ionic liquid mixed with the pore-filling polymer; or (b) an amorphous fluorochemical film disposed on the composite membrane.

Examples disclosed herein relate to methods and systems for controllably removing one or more solutes from a solution. Examples disclosed herein relate to methods and systems for removing water from alcoholic beverages.

Various embodiments disclosed relate to methods of separating volatile compounds from a liquid feed mixture comprising an emulsion. In various embodiments, the method includes contacting a first side of a first membrane with a liquid feed mixture including an emulsion having a polymer, and at least one volatile compound. The method can also include contacting a second side of the first membrane with a sweep medium including at least one a sweep fluid to produce a permeate mixture on the second side of the first membrane and a retentate mixture on the first side of the first membrane, wherein the permeate mixture is enriched in the volatile compound, and the retentate mixture is depleted in the volatile compound.

The oxygenator of organic fluids comprises: a container body having a longitudinal axis; a first inlet opening for the oxygen and a second outlet opening for an exhaust gas obtained in the container body; a third inlet opening for an organic fluid to be oxygenated and a fourth outlet opening for oxygenated organic fluid obtained in the container body; an oxygenation chamber of the fluid to be oxygenated that is defined inside the container body; a distribution pre-chamber of the fluid to be oxygenated fitted between the third inlet opening and the oxygenation chamber; a mass of capillary fibers that are impermeable to liquids and porous to gasses, designed to be lapped by the organic fluid and arranged inside the oxygenation chamber according with a common parallel direction; dynamic distribution means supported in the distribution pre-chamber by support means.

The invention provides a water-alcohol separation system and a method for water-alcohol separation for producing a high purity alcohol while achieving energy saving as the whole process. Namely, a water-alcohol separation system including plural separation membrane modules connected in series, a vacuum apparatus for reducing a pressure at a permeated side of each of the separation membrane modules, and a condenser for condensing a vapor that has passed through a membrane, in which plural independent vacuum systems reduce the pressure at the permeated side of the membrane of the separation membrane modules.

Process for separating a highly pure propylene product from a liquefied petroleum gas stream is disclosed, which eliminates a C3 splitter having over 120 trays and the additional equipment that a C3 splitter requires. The process includes passing a feed stream to a dividing wall column to produce an overhead stream, a first side draw stream, a second side draw stream, and a product stream. The first side draw stream is passed to a treatment unit to produce a treated stream. The treated stream is passed to a membrane unit and a permeate stream is passed from the membrane unit to produce a polymer grade propylene stream.

A composite ion conducting tube is made by wrapping a support material or ion conducting sheet to from a tube having overlaps of layers that are bonded. The ion conducting sheet or tape used to make the tube may be very thin and the tube may be formed in situ by wrapping the support material and then coating with ion conducting polymer. The ion conducting tubes may be used in a pervaporation module or desalination system. The ion conducting tubes may be spirally wrapped or longitudinally wrapped and may be very thin having a tube wall thickness of no more than 25 microns.