Provided are: a dehydration system in which occurrence of damage to a membrane element in a zeolite membrane module can be suppressed; and an operation method of the same. This dehydration system for aqueous organic compounds includes: a zeolite membrane module, inside of which one or plural tubular membrane elements each having a zeolite membrane are arranged and which separates water from an aqueous organic compound supplied thereto; a pressure-reducing means; a condenser, and the dehydration system has at least one of the following configurations (1) and (2). Configuration (1): the dehydration system includes a temperature-maintaining means for maintaining a pipe connecting the membrane module and the condenser to have a temperature at which water does not condense, and Configuration (2): the pipe connecting the membrane module and the condenser is arranged downward from a permeated water outlet of the membrane module toward the condenser.

The present invention relates to surface modifying agents for polymeric and/or textile materials, methods of making and/or using a surface modifying agent to modify and functionalize polymeric and/or textile materials, and/or methods of using surface modified or functionalized polymeric and textile materials, and/or products using or incorporating surface modified or functionalized polymeric and textile materials. For example, the surface modifying agent in precursor form can be styrene sulfonyl azide monomer, polymer or copolymer capable of undergoing a chemical reaction in the presence of heat or light to form one or more styrene sulfonated nitrene monomers, polymers or copolymers, which are capable of chemically reacting with the surface of a polymeric or textile material to endow a specific or desired chemical surface functionality to the surface of a polymeric or textile material. Furthermore, the present invention is possibly preferably directed to a surface modifying agent which comprises a styrene sulfonated nitrene monomer, polymer or polymer containing one or more nitrene functional groups, which are capable of chemically reacting via an insertion reaction into one or more carbon-hydrogen bonds on the surface of a polymeric or textile material in order to chemically attach a specific or desired chemical functionality to the surface of a polymeric or textile material.

Provided is a method for separating a specific gas from a raw gas using a gas separation membrane module that includes a gas separation membrane element enclosed in a housing. The element includes a gas separation membrane including a hydrophilic resin composition layer. The method includes: preparing the module; increasing pressure in an interior of the module; increasing a temperature in the interior; and feeding a raw gas to the interior. The layer of the module prepared is adjusted to contain moisture, and a moisture content thereof is an amount that allows an equilibrium relative humidity at a temperature of 23? C. of a gas phase portion in the housing to be 10% RH or more. The raw gas feeding step is performed after the preparation step. The pressure increase step and the temperature increase step are performed after the preparation step and before the raw gas feeding step.

Described are porous membrane products that contain two or more membrane layers bonded together at a portion of the area of the membranes, methods and system for preparing the porous membrane products, and methods of using the porous membrane products.

The present disclosure relates to a membrane apparatus for selectively retaining and releasing target cations, such as lithium. The membrane apparatus comprises a cation exchange layer and an anion exchange layer that are coupled and configured for hydraulic communication with sufficient permselectivity to facilitate water splitting under an applied voltage. The cation exchange layer comprises a sorbing agent that has a target cation binding coefficient that is less than its hydrogen ion binding coefficient such that it may be efficiently regenerated by in situ produced hydrogen ions. Electrically regenerated ion exchange devices and methods are also described.

A method for making a substrate for a graphene membrane comprises: a. providing a sheet of a porous polymer; b. treating the sheet of the porous polymer with an acid to impart a negative charge to the sheet of the porous polymer, to yield a charged surface; and c. treating the charged surface with at least one metal ion.

A dry-process microporous membrane for filtration, wherein at least one layer of the membrane has an average pore size less than 0.035 microns, preferably between about 0.010 microns to about 0.020 microns, and a thickness less than 14 microns. The membrane may be used in an ultra-filtration or nano-filtration process. The membrane exhibits high dimensional stability.

A CO.sub.2 separation membrane can include a CO.sub.2-philic layer comprising one or more mobile CO.sub.2 carriers and one or more immobile CO.sub.2 carriers and a blended CO.sub.2-permeable and CO.sub.2-selective matrix that hosts the immobile or mobile CO.sub.2 carriers and porous nanostructures that adsorb water vapors. The CO.sub.2-philic layer can be disposed upstream of the CO.sub.2-permeance layer such that a flow of source gas to be separate enters the membrane from a feed side at which the CO.sub.2-philic layer is present and CO.sub.2 exits the membrane at a permeate side after passing through both the CO.sub.2-philic layer and the CO.sub.2-permeance layer.

A method of concentrating a lithium-containing aqueous solution, the method comprising: (i) providing a water-permeable structure having an inner surface and outer surface, wherein at least said outer surface is coated with a water-permeable hydrophilic polymer having a thermal stability of at least 100? C.; and (ii) flowing a lithium-containing aqueous feed solution having an initial concentration of lithium over said inner surface while said outer surface is in contact with an aqueous draw solution containing a higher overall ion concentration than said lithium-containing aqueous feed solution, to result in forward osmosis of water from said lithium-containing aqueous feed solution to said aqueous draw solution, and wherein said forward osmosis results in a lithium-containing aqueous product solution having an increased concentration of lithium relative to the initial concentration of lithium in the lithium-containing aqueous feed solution.

A novel or improved base film for impregnation, impregnated base film, product incorporating the impregnated base film, and/or related methods as shown, claimed or described herein.