An extracorporeal system for lung assist includes a system housing, which includes a blood flow inlet and a blood flow outlet and a fiber bundle housing movably positioned within the system housing. The fiber bundle housing includes a gas inlet and a gas outlet. A fiber bundle is in operative connection with the fiber bundle housing. The fiber bundle includes a plurality of hollow gas permeable fibers, wherein lumens of the plurality of hollow gas fibers are in fluid connection with the gas inlet at a first end thereof and in fluid connection with the gas outlet as a second end thereof. The system further includes an actuator to impart oscillatory motion to the fiber bundle housing and thereby to the fiber bundle.

Disclosed is a membrane bioreactor system capable of minimizing the energy consumption while guaranteeing excellent membrane cleaning effect. According to the membrane bioreactor system of the present invention, a filtration apparatus for solid-liquid separation is provided in an aerobic tank and a portion of fine bubbles supplied to increase the dissolved oxygen of wastewater introduced into the aerobic tank are used for cleaning the membrane of the filtration apparatus.

Systems and methods for acoustically-enhanced membrane separation are described. The system may generally include a separation membrane and an acoustically-responsive structure positioned proximate the upstream side of the separation membrane. The system may further include a transducer for generating an acoustic field, wherein the acoustic field causes microstructures extending from the acoustically-responsive structure to oscillate and thereby create streaming effects in the region between the distal ends of the microstructures and the upstream side of the separation membrane. These streaming effects can prevent or remove separation membrane fouling, prevent the formation of cake layers on the separation membrane, and/or remove cake layer formed on a separation membrane.

A novel filter media includes an array of raised features formed directly on the membrane surface, which create a feed channel. The predetermined configuration of features is dually optimized both for filtration in a first flow direction to maximize unobstructed fluid flow and prevent fouling. The same feature configuration is also optimized for enhancing/increasing turbulence and scouring of the membrane when the flow through the filter is reversed during a cleaning operation. The feature configuration can also be optimized to capture bubbles in reverse flow such that the captured bubbles can be oscillated to further scour the membrane and the features themselves (e.g., in their cavities, etc.).

A membrane filtration module configured for use in a filtration reactor, the module comprising: hollow fiber membranes configured to perform filtration of feed fluid in the reactor; and a vibration mechanism configured to vibrate the hollow fiber membranes to generate shear stresses on the surface of the hollow fiber membranes for reducing fouling of the hollow fiber membranes.

A device hereof includes a first volume for flow of a first fluid therethrough, a second volume for flow of a second fluid therethrough, a membrane separating the first volume from the second volume, which is permeable to transfer/exchange of at least one component between the first volume and the second volume and a drive system or actuator system to induce oscillation in the membrane.

Apparatus and method for semi-permeable membrane cleaning in particular, applying series of pulsed water stroke, made simultaneously with osmosis backward flow causing superposed membrane directional shaking and fouling detachment. Pulsed water stroke provided by water stroke generator as several momentum sharp changes in gauge pressure and induce velocity pulse of residual brine flow. The pulsed water strokes ideally induce resonance in the membrane. Osmosis backward wash may be provided either by injection for predetermined injection time, additional solution selected in such way that net driving pressure becomes opposite to normal osmotic operation thereby providing a backward flow of permeate towards to the side opposite to normal operation mode, so as to lift said foulant, or by throttling permeate exiting from the permeate enclosure, until the net driving pressure value become equal to zero, during application of precise synchronized and opposing brine and permeate pressure strokes thereby providing a plurality of quick RO-FO-RO process changes. These procedures allow a membrane to be kept continuously clean and operate at higher recovery.

The present invention relates to membrane bioreactor (MBR) system that includes a mechanical membrane reciprocation system to reduce or eliminate membrane fouling. The disclosed MBR system can be operated with higher flux and lower fouling than MBR systems using air scouring. Furthermore the system can remove nitrogen and phosphorous with one RAS and one or no internal recirculation line. The membrane can be reciprocated by a low RPM motor connected to a pulley via belt to rotate rotor to convert rotational motion into reciprocating motion of membrane. Various mechanical means can also be employed to create the reciprocating motion.

Apparatus and method for semi-permeable membrane cleaning in particular, applying series of pulsed water stroke, made simultaneously with osmosis backward flow causing superposed membrane directional shaking and fouling detachment. Pulsed water stroke provided by water stroke generator as several momentum sharp changes in gauge pressure and induce velocity pulse of residual brine flow. The pulsed water strokes ideally induce resonance in the membrane. Osmosis backward wash may be provided either by injection for predetermined injection time, additional solution selected in such way that net driving pressure be-comes opposite to normal osmotic operation thereby providing a backward flow of permeate towards to the side opposite to normal operation mode, so as to lift said foulant, or by throttling permeate exiting from the permeate enclosure, until the net driving pressure value become equal to zero, during application of precise synchronized and opposing brine and permeate pressure strokes thereby providing a plurality of quick RO-FO-RO process changes. These procedures allow a membrane to be kept continuously clean and operate at higher recovery.

There is provided a method of concentrating functional biological components within a liquid suspension, the method comprising: providing a system comprising an ultrafiltration/concentration unit (UCU), the UCU comprising a first chamber for receiving therein the liquid suspension. a second chamber for receiving therein the filtrate, and a filter disposed in a fluid path therebetween. the filter comprising pores sizes so as to prevent passage therethrough of the biological components: introducing the liquid suspension into the first chamber: maintaining a pressure in the first chamber being no greater than approximately 2 bar; maintaining a pressure in the second chamber being lower than that of the first chamber: and harvesting the concentrated biological components: wherein a retentate is obtained in which the concentration of the biological components therewithin is increased. relative to the liquid suspension. by a factor of at least fifty. and wherein a majority of the biological components in the retentate are functional.