A composite membrane for selectively pervaporating a first liquid from a mixture comprising the first liquid and a 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 polymer is more permeable to the first liquid than the second liquid but not soluble in the first liquid or the second liquid. The composite membrane may be asymmetric or symmetric with respect to the amount of pore-filling polymer throughout the thickness of the porous substrate.

The present disclosure relates to semipermeable membranes which are suitable for blood purification, e.g. by hemodialysis, which have an increased ability to remove larger molecules while at the same time effectively retaining albumin. The membranes are characterized by a molecular retention onset (MWRO) of between 9.0 kD and 14.5 kD and a molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) of between 55 kD and 130 kD as determined by dextran sieving curves and can be prepared by industrially feasible processes excluding a treatment with salt before drying. The invention therefore also relates to a process for the production of the membranes and to their use in medical applications.

A crossflow filter includes a rigid cylindrical inner wall and a rigid cylindrical outer wall inner with an inelastic filter membrane positioned therebetween defining a retentate channel inside the filter membrane and a permeate channel outside the filter membrane. Further, the filter includes transition channels shaped and connected to the inner and outer walls to deliver a flow of fluid from an inlet port to the retentate channel and to capture flow flowing longitudinally along the cylindrical inner and outer walls from both the retentate and permeate channels to respective outlet ports.

The present invention is an integral multilayered composite membrane having at least one ultrafiltration layer made by cocasting or sequentially casting a plurality of polymer solutions onto a support to form a multilayered liquid sheet and immersing the sheet into a liquid coagulation bath to effect phase separation and form a multilayered composite membrane having at least one ultrafiltration layer.

This invention provides a new high selectivity stable facilitated transport membrane comprising a polyethersulfone (PES)/polyethylene oxide-polysilsesquioxane (PEO-Si) blend support membrane, a hydrophilic polymer inside the pores on the skin layer surface of the PES/PEO-Si blend support membrane; a hydrophilic polymer coated on the skin layer surface of the PES/PEO-Si blend support membrane, and metal salts incorporated in the hydrophilic polymer coating layer and the skin layer surface pores of the PES/PEO-Si blend support membrane, and methods of making such membranes. This invention also provides a method of using the high selectivity stable facilitated transport membrane comprising PES/PEO-Si blend support membrane for olefin/paraffin separations such as propylene/propane and ethylene/ethane separations.

Disclosed herein are asymmetric thin-film composite membranes and methods of making and using the same. Also included herein are asymmetric thin-film composite membranes for preventing and/or reducing microfouling or macrofouling. Additionally included herein are asymmetric thin-film composite membranes for preventing and/or reducing biofilm.

A composite membrane for selectively pervaporating a first liquid from a mixture comprising the first liquid and a 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 polymer is more permeable to the first liquid than the second liquid but not soluble in the first liquid or the second liquid. The composite membrane may be asymmetric or symmetric with respect to the amount of pore-filling polymer throughout the thickness of the porous substrate.

The present invention relates to a method for producing a porous monolayer polymer membrane, to a porous monolayer polymer membrane, and to the use of the polymer membrane for filtration.

The polymer film of the present invention has through holes extending from one principal surface of the polymer film to the other principal surface of the polymer film. The through holes are straight holes having a central axis extending straight, and have a shape in which the area of a cross-section perpendicular to the direction of the central axis increases from the one principal surface of the polymer film toward the other principal surface. This polymer film has passages in its thickness direction, has an unconventional structure, and can be used in various applications, such as in a waterproof sound-permeable membrane, in a waterproof gas-permeable membrane, and in a suction sheet. The ratio a/b of the opening diameter a of the through holes at the one principal surface to the opening diameter b of the through holes at the other principal surface is 80% or is less than 80%.

Compositions and methods are described for self-assembled polymer materials having at least one of macro, meso, or micro pores.