A hollow fiber membrane sheet-like object in which a plurality of hollow fiber membranes is aligned in parallel with each other and fixed to each other while both end faces of each of the hollow fiber membranes in a longitudinal direction are open, wherein at least one belt-like binding portion made of an elastic body having an elongation percentage (E) stipulated by JIS K6251 of 100% or more and extending in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction is formed at each of both end portions of the hollow fiber membrane sheet-like object, and the plurality of hollow fiber membranes is fixed to each other.

The present invention relates to a fuel cell membrane humidifier which can prevent gas leakage due to repetition of driving and stopping of a fuel cell, can be manufactured with relatively low manufacturing costs and high productivity, and can suppress vibrations generated during operation. A fuel cell membrane humidifier according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: a humidification module for humidifying air supplied from the outside with moisture in exhaust gas discharged from a fuel cell stack; and caps respectively coupled to both ends of the humidification module. The humidification module comprises: a mid-case which has both ends opened and a step difference formed on the inner circumferential surface thereof; at least one cartridge which is disposed within the mid-case and accommodates a plurality of hollow fiber membranes; a fixed layer in which ends of the hollow fiber membranes are potted and supported by the inner wall of the mid-case; a bracket which is supported by the step difference of the mid-case and is in contact with the fixed layer; and a packing member which has a groove into which an end of the mid-case is fitted and is in contact with the bracket. In addition, the humidification module has a damping protrusion which is formed on the inner wall of the mid-case and fitted into the fixed layer to suppress vibration generated in the cartridge by air flowing inside the humidification module.

A hollow fiber membrane bundle useful for manufacturing a wide variety of hollow fiber membrane modules having different flow configurations includes hollow fiber membranes arranged around a porous support tube, a cured resin tubesheet formed at first end of the bundle, and either a cured resin nub or a cured resin tubesheet formed at a second end of the bundle. The bore(s) of the hollow fiber membranes are open at a face of the tubesheet adjacent the first end of the bundle. The tubesheet has an annular structure that encapsulates the hollow fiber membranes and the porous support tube at the first end of the bundle but which does not completely block a bore of the porous support tube, wherein the collection tube has a plurality of orifices formed therein at least at positions adjacent the nub.

The present invention relates to a hollow-fiber membrane module including: a hollow-fiber membrane bundle including a plurality of hollow-fiber membranes bundled in a potting part; a housing enclosing the hollow-fiber membrane bundle; and a protective member contacting with an outer surface of the potting part and continuously covering the outer surface, in which the protective member has a notched part through which one end of the protective member communicates with another end in a longitudinal direction of the hollow-fiber membrane bundle.

The present invention is related to a new membrane cartridge system comprising hollow fiber membranes, a special new end cap for the production of the new cartridge, membrane separation devices comprising the new membrane cartridges and a process for manufacture of the new cartridges.

A cartridge is provided for dialysis or other blood processing therapy. In the cartridge, fibers may be substantially uniformly distributed near a midplane, but near an end, in the inter fiber space, there may be void flow channels, which may cause fluid flow in the inter fiber space to transition within a short region to uniform flow with minimal stagnation zones. Void flow channels may be be radially oriented, introducing fluid from the outer circumference, or axially oriented, introducing fluid along the axial direction through passageways through the potting material. The fluid flow in the inter fiber space may be perpendicular to the fibers, or radial with respect to a cartridge longitudinal axis. The cartridge may have blood flow in the inter fiber space, and flow of dialysate or ultrafiltrate in the lumens of the fibers, or the opposite situation.

A separation and/or humidification element that employs fibrous hollow membrane tubes is provided, which may be used for water vapor transfer between different gas streams in a fuel cell application, such as to humidify the reaction gas. At least one and typically two composite end caps encapsulate ends of a bundle of the fibrous hollow membrane tubes. Each composite end cap comprises adhesive (e.g. epoxy) and a preform such as a plastic annular shroud.

A hollow-fiber membrane module of the invention includes: a cylindrical case having a first end and a second end in a height direction thereof; a hollow-fiber membrane bundle being housed in the cylindrical case and having a plurality of hollow-fiber membranes each closed at an end part on the first end side and opened at an end part on the second end side; a first binding part binding the end parts on the first end side of the hollow-fiber membranes; a first flow channel guiding fluid to pass through the first binding part from the first end side to the second end side of the first binding part; and a channel material directing, at a terminal on the second end side of the first flow channel, a flow of at least a part of the fluid flowing out from the terminal on the second end side of the first flow channel toward a direction intersecting the height direction of the cylindrical case.

The invention is directed to preparation of hollow fiber membrane devices that exhibit improved durability and mechanical strength in air separation operations such as generation of nitrogen enriched air on board aircraft. In particular the invention provides for preparation of hollow fiber membrane modules with terminal tubesheets of superior mechanical properties and improved long term durability in air separation operations.

A heat exchanger for an oxygenator device has multiple hollow fiber membranes that each have a hollow portion through which a heat medium passes, wherein the fibers are wound as a cylinder body. Each of the hollow fiber membranes follows a path between opposing ends of the cylinder body which is tilted with respect to a central axis of the cylinder body and is wound around the central axis of the cylinder body, wherein a tilt angle with respect to the central axis ranges from 22 to smaller than 67, and wherein a constituent material of each of the hollow fiber membranes has a Young's modulus E ranging from 2.6 GPa to 0.07 GPa. During winding, the hollow fiber membranes are stretched according to a stretching rate between 0.5% and 3.0% and then fixed at the ends to maintain the stretching.