A spiral wound assembly including a pressure vessel including an inner chamber, feed inlet, concentrate outlet and permeate outlet and a spiral wound membrane module located within the inner chamber of the pressure vessel; wherein the assembly is characterized by including: i) a flow restrictor comprising: a first and second plate in sealing contact with one another; and a fluid channel located between the first and second plate and including a first end in fluid communication with at least one of the concentrate outlet and the permeate outlet, and a second end adapted for discharging fluid from the spiral wound assembly; and ii) a sensor sheet comprising at least one sensor element located between the first and second plates and in contact with the fluid channel, wherein the sensor sheet is adapted for measuring a property of fluid passing through the fluid channel.

Embodiments described herein are directed to methods of manufacturing a multi-leaf membrane module for filtering product fluid flow (e.g., food products or wastewater) and such multi-leaf membrane modules. In an embodiment, a multi-leaf membrane module is disclosed. The multi-leaf membrane module includes a permeate fluid flow tube defining a permeate fluid flow channel for permeate, and a membrane sheet spirally wound about the permeate fluid flow tube. The membrane sheet includes two or more leaves. Each of the two or more leaves includes a feed spacer including at least one opening formed therein that at least partially defines a feed channel for product fluid flow therethrough and a permeate structure defining a permeate fluid flow channel. The permeate structure of each of the two or more leaves includes at least one membrane and at least one porous permeate spacer.

A filter device (10), in particular for a tangential flow filtration device, has at least one fluid inlet (22), at least one retentate outlet (24) and at least one permeate outlet (26). The filter device (10) further has at least one membrane (16) which separates a retentate section (18) from a permeate section (20) in the filter device (10). Arranged in the retentate section (18) and/or in the permeate section (20) is at least one flow fitting (28) which is not formed from a woven or non-woven fabric, but from a structured plastic part, silicone part, metal part or ceramic part.

A manufacturing method for a separation membrane element is a manufacturing method for a spiral-wound type separation membrane element including a perforated hollow tube and a laminated body that includes a separation membrane and is wound around the hollow tube. The manufacturing method includes pressing a press member against a portion of the laminated body that is wound around the hollow tube. The pressing presses the press member to satisfy respective relations defined by formulas (1) and (2):

0.1Ps1Pe(1), and

0.1Ps2Pe(2).

Membrane elements that use multiple membrane leaves may have a limited total active membrane area due to an increased diameter at the ends of the element. Membrane leaves may comprise a permeate carrier positioned between one or more membrane sheets. Adhesive may be used to seal one or more edges of the membrane leaf. The membrane sheets, permeate carrier and the adhesive contribute to the thickness of the edges of the membrane leaf and the diameter at the ends of the element. A reduced thickness of the edges of the permeate carrier may reduce the diameter at the ends of an element. Another permeate carrier sheet may also be used that is distanced from at least one edge of the membrane sheet so the permeate carrier sheet does not contribute towards the increased diameter at the ends of the element.

Embodiments of the present invention provide for the deposition of spacing elements for spiral wound elements that prevent nesting of adjacent spacer layers and occlusion of feed space during element rolling.

The invention relates to membranes, membrane modules, and applications therefor. In particular, the invention relates to the construction of membranes and membrane modules for use in osmotically driven membrane processes.

Embodiments of the present invention provide for flow control devices on a spiral wound membrane, on a device proximal the inlet edge of a spiral wound membrane, or both. The flow directing devices can alter fluid flow characteristics to discourage fouling of the inlet fluid paths.

The disclosure relates to a membrane leaf packet, and a spiral membrane element including a plurality of such membrane leaf packets, including such elements exhibiting enhanced sanitary properties. Such membrane elements can be used for filtration, for example, in food-related fields, including filtering dairy, sugar and/or other liquid streams.

According to the present invention, even when a high recovery ratio operation is performed, the influence of concentration of ingredients to be separated in the feed fluid can be reduced, the concentration polarization can be prevented by increasing the turbulence effect on the membrane surface, and the fluid permeation performance and the separation performance of the separation membrane element can be maintained.