A radiation curable composition for preparing a polymeric membrane includes a) a membrane polymer selected from the group consisting of a polysulfone (PSU), a polyether sulfone (PES), a polyether etherketone (PEEK), a polyvinylchloride (PVC), a polyacrylonitrile (PAN), a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), a polyimide (PI), a polyamide (PA) and copolymers thereof; b) a hydrophobic monomer or oligomer having at least two free radical polymerizable groups independently selected from the group consisting of an acrylate group, a methacrylate group, an acrylamide group, a methacrylamide group, a styrene group, a vinyl ether group, a vinyl ester group, a maleate group, a fumarate group, an itaconate group, and a maleimide group; and c) an organic solvent for the membrane polymer and the hydrophobic monomer. A polymeric membrane and a method for manufacturing the membrane are also disclosed.

An asymmetric polyvinylidene chloride copolymer membrane is made by a method using a dope solution comprised of a polyvinylidene chloride copolymer and a solvent that solubilizes the polyvinylidene chloride copolymer that is shaped to form an initial shaped membrane. The initial shaped membrane is then quenched in a liquid comprised of a solvent that is miscible with the solvent that solubilizes the polyvinylidene chloride copolymer but is immiscible with the polyvinylidene chloride copolymer to form a wet asymmetric polyvinylidene chloride copolymer membrane. The solvents are removed from the wet membrane to form the asymmetric polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) copolymer membrane. The membrane then may be further heated to form a carbon asymmetric membrane in which the porous support structure and separation layer of the PVDC membrane is maintained. The asymmetric carbon membrane may be useful to separate gases such as olefins from their corresponding paraffins, hydrogen from syngas or cracked gas, natural gas or refinery gas, oxygen/nitrogen, or carbon dioxide and methane.

A porous membrane includes a modacrylic copolymer. The modacrylic copolymer includes, with respect to 100 parts by mass of all structural units constituting the modacrylic copolymer, 15 to 85 parts by mass of a structural unit derived from acrylonitrile, 15 to 85 parts by mass of a structural unit derived from at least one halogen-containing monomer selected from the group consisting of vinyl halide and vinylidene halide, and 0 to 10 parts by mass of a structural unit derived from a vinyl monomer having an ionic substituent. The porous membrane can be produced by preparing a modacrylic copolymer solution by dissolving the modacrylic copolymer in a solvent, and bringing the modacrylic copolymer solution into contact with a non-solvent for the modacrylic copolymer such that the modacrylic copolymer solution is solidified.

Disclosed is an ion-exchange membrane that includes a molecular barrier for influencing permeation selectivity through the membrane. The membrane includes fluorinated carbon backbone chains and fluorinated side chains that extend off of the fluorinated carbon backbone chains. The fluorinated side chains include acid groups for ionic conductivity. The acid groups surround and define permeable domains that are free of the fluorinated carbon backbone chains. Molecular barriers are located in the permeable domains and influence permeability through the domains.

A method for producing a dialysis membrane in hollow-fiber membrane or flat membrane geometry includes: a) making a casting or spinning solution for production of a base membrane for the dialysis membrane out of at least one polysulfone and at least one pore-forming hydrophilic additive in at least one organic solvent, b) bringing the casting or spinning solution into contact with a precipitating agent to form the base membrane, and c) rinsing out the at least one organic solvent after precipitation of the casting or spinning solution in flat or hollow-fiber form.

The present invention provides a coated hollow fiber membrane which has an isoporous inner skin and a porous outer support membrane, i.e. an inside-out isoporous composite hollow fiber membrane, and to a method of preparing such membranes. The coated hollow fiber membrane is prepared by a method comprising providing a hollow fiber support membrane having a lumen surrounded by the support membrane, and coating and the inner surface thereof by first passing a polymer solution of at least one amphiphilic block copolymer in a suitable solvent through the lumen of the hollow fiber support membrane and along the inner surface thereof, thereafter pressing a core gas stream through the lumen of the coated hollow fiber mebrane, and thereafter passing a non-solvent (precipitant) through the lumen of the coated hollow fiber membrane. In order to remove the solvent or solvents completely, the membranes are kept in water for 1-2 days and washed prior to use. In order to maintain the porosity of support membrane, membrane pretreatment is advantageous prior to coating which reduces the infiltration of block copolymer solution. The membranes are useful infiltration modules, in particular microfiltration modules, ultrafiltration modules, nano-filtration modules.

Provided are UHMW polymers having a molecular weight of 500 kg/mol or greater. The UHMW polymers can be block copolymers, homopolymers, and random/statistical copolymers. The UHMW polymers can be used to form porous layers, which may be used in filtration membranes, such as, for example, ultrafiltration membranes. The filtration membranes can be used in various separation methods.

A Polyvinylidene fluoride-based microporous membrane comprising: a substrate film; and the following microporous membrane, wherein the microporous membrane is an asymmetric membrane, and has a skin layer in which micropores are formed and a support layer which supports the skin layer and in which pores larger than the micropores are formed, a material of the microporous membrane is a polyvinylidene fluoride-based resin, the skin layer has a plurality of spherical bodies, a plurality of linear binding materials extend three-dimensionally from the respective spherical bodies, the adjacent spherical bodies are connected with each other by the linear binding materials to form a three-dimensional network structure where the spherical bodies serve as intersections, and the number of defects (the number of colored coarse voids) is less than 20.

The present invention relates to a method of preparing a nanocomposite membrane, comprising: (a) providing a nanocomposite solution comprising a polymer solution and nanomaterials; (b) subjecting the nanocomposite solution to a cold water bath to produce the nanocomposite membrane in a gel-like form; and (c) subjecting the gel nanocomposite membrane to a heat treatment to solidify the nanocomposite membrane, wherein the nanomaterials are dispersed within the polymer matrix of the nanocomposite membrane.

The present invention includes a treatment system and methods for removing waste or other agents from a fluid stream, the system comprising: an inlet flow path for receiving a fluid stream from a source outside the treatment system; a vessel for containing the fluid stream, the vessel comprising a permeable filter configured for biological and physical treatment of the fluid stream, the filter comprising one or more nano-thin film or polymer composite layers of carbon materials assembled in sp2 hybridized structures comprising carbon-carbon bonds, wherein the waste or agent is removed as it flows through pores in the film composite; and a drain fluidly connected to the vessel for discharging treated fluid stream from the vessel from which the waste or agents have been removed.