A method is described for forming a body having at least one through-going passage, said method has the steps of: a) providing a mixture comprising particles and at least one liquid pocket inside a curable matrix, b) subjecting said mixture to a first alternating voltage having a first frequency to form a body in which said at least one liquid pocket extends from a first surface of said body to a second surface of said body thereby forming at least one through-going passage lacking curable matrix, and c) curing said curable matrix into a cured matrix, wherein at least some of said particles are located at an interface between said at least one through-going passage comprising liquid and said cured matrix.

The present disclosure relates to a method for forming a transport mechanism for transporting at least one of a gas or a liquid. The method may comprise using a 3D printing operation to form the mechanism with an inlet and an outlet, and controlling the 3D printing operation to create the mechanism as an engineered surface structure formed in a layer-by-layer process. The method may further comprise controlling the 3D printing operation such that the engineered surface structure includes a plurality of cells propagating periodically in three dimensions, with non-intersecting, non-flat, continuously curving wall portions which form two non-intersecting domains, and where the wall portions have openings forming a plurality of flow paths extending in three orthogonal dimensions throughout from the inlet to the outlet, and such that the engineered cellular structure has wall portions having a mean curvature other than zero.

A membrane device comprising a porous ceramic member. The porous ceramic member comprises a first support portion operable to support an active layer and further comprises a second support portion. The second support portion has a higher D.sub.75 average pore size than the D.sub.75 average pore size of the first support portion. The second support portion comprises a lattice structure that has a porosity percentage of ?40%. The porous ceramic member has a tensile strength operable to withstand feed application pressure of ?100 kPa (1 bar).

(57) Abstract: Bioartificial ultrafiltration devices comprising a scaffold comprising a population of cells enclosed in a matrix and disposed adjacent a plurality of channels are provided. The population of cells provides molecules such as therapeutic molecules to a subject in need thereof and is supported by the nutrients filtered in an ultrafiltrate from the blood of the subject. The plurality of channels in the scaffold facilitate the transportation of the ultrafiltrate and exchange of molecules between the ultrafiltrate and the population of cells.

A cell filtration filter that includes a metal membrane part that has a first main surface on which the cells are to be captured and a second main surface that opposes the first main surface. The metal membrane part has a plurality of hole edges that define a plurality of first through holes and a support region that is arranged around the hole edges and supports the hole edges. In the support region of the metal membrane part, a plurality of second through holes, which have smaller openings than the first through holes, are arranged so as to surround the hole edges. On the first main surface of the membrane part, the hole edges are raised with respect to the support region.

The present invention relates to a composite porous hollow-fiber membrane including a first layer and a second layer which each include a fluororesin-based polymer, in which the first layer has a columnar texture oriented in a longitudinal direction of the composite porous hollow-fiber membrane, the columnar texture has an average value v of a Raman orientation parameter calculated with the specific formula, and the second layer has a three-dimensional network texture and has an average surface-pore diameter of 5.0 nm to 5.0 m.

A device, system, and method for separating, concentrating, and isolating target particles from a bioliquid sample includes a sample reservoir, a first filtration membrane, a second filtration membrane, a first chamber, and a second chamber. The first chamber with first outlet is connected to the sample reservoir through the first filtration membrane. The second chamber with second outlet is connected to the sample reservoir through the second filtration membrane. Negative pressures are applied alternately to the two filtration membranes to isolate target particles, clogging of the membranes being prevented by the same alternating but opposite-phase positive pressures.

An isolation device of target particles from a liquid sample includes an isolation chip, a vacuum unit, and a frequency converting unit. The isolation chip includes a sample reservoir, a first chamber, and a second chamber. The first chamber and the second chamber define a first outlet and a second outlet, respectively. The vacuum unit is connected to the first outlet and the second outlet. The frequency converting unit causes the vacuum unit to generate negative pressures in the first chamber and the second chamber alternately.

A method for producing a filter, the method comprising providing a first layer above a substrate; providing a block copolymer layer above the first layer; converting the block copolymer layer to a mask by selectively removing domains of the block copolymer layer; etching pores through the first layer in regions exposed by the mask; and forming a channel through the substrate, the channel being configured to provide fluid communication between a first and a second end of the channel, the first end of the channel being directly below the etched pores of the first layer, whereby fluid passing through the channel and the pores is filtered by the pores, when the filter is in use.

A filter for filtering nucleated cells that includes a body containing at least either a metal or a metal oxide as its main component; and plural through holes, each of which have a shape other than a square shape, formed therein. An arithmetic average roughness of a first side of the filter part is smaller than a size of a nucleus of the nucleated cells to be filtered.