The present invention discloses a beverage dispenser, having a supply opening adapted for supplying an aqueous liquid from a source of aqueous liquid, wherein the supply opening is couplable to the source of aqueous liquid; a recooling heat exchanger having a heat receiving portion, a recooling inlet and a recooling outlet, wherein the supply opening is coupled with the recooling inlet; a reverse osmosis filter having an inlet for aqueous liquid, a permeate outlet and a concentrate outlet, wherein the recooling outlet of the recooling heat exchanger is connected to the inlet of the reverse osmosis filter; and a cooling device having a cooling portion extracting heat energy from the permeate and a heat dissipation portion dissipating energy to the heat receiving portion of the recooling heat exchanger; wherein the heat dissipation portion of the cooling device is thermally coupled with the heat receiving portion of the recooling heat exchanger; and wherein the cooling portion of the cooling device is thermally coupled with the permeate exiting the permeate outlet of the reverse osmosis filter, wherein the permeate enters the cooling portion by a cooling portion permeate inlet and exits the cooling portion by a cooling portion permeate outlet.

A membrane distillation (MD) module includes a first MD sub-module including a first thermocouple; a second MD sub-module including a second thermocouple; and a distillation membrane sandwiched between the first MD sub-module and the second MD sub-module. A hot chamber of the first MD sub-module is closed by the distillation membrane, and a cold chamber of the second MD sub-module is closed by the distillation membrane.

A water treatment system includes: EDI having deionization chamber that deionizes water that contains boron and concentration chambers in which concentrated water flows; and a cooler to cool the water supplied to deionization chamber or the concentrated water supplied to concentration chambers. Alternatively, water treatment system includes EDI having deionization chamber that deionizes water that contains boron, concentration chambers in which concentrated water flows, and electrode chambers in which electrode water flows; a cooler that adjusts temperature of the water or temperature of the concentrated water supplied to concentration chamber; and a controller that controls the cooler such that the cooler adjusts the temperature of the water supplied to deionization chamber or the temperature of the concentrated water supplied to the concentration chambers within a range of 10-23° C., based on the temperature of the water, temperature of treated water of EDI, the temperature of the concentrated water, or temperature of the electrode water.

A water purification apparatus (1) comprising a RO-device (2) comprising a RO-membrane (2a). The RO-device (2) is configured to receive inlet water to be purified from an inlet path (19) and produce permeate water into a permeate path (22) and reject water into a reject path (23). The apparatus (1) also comprises a recirculation path (24) arranged to recirculate reject water from the reject path (23) to the inlet water. The apparatus further comprises a cooling arrangement (30) comprising a cooling device (31, 39). The cooling arrangement (30) is configured to cool the recirculated reject water in the recirculation path (24) with the cooling device (31, 39), and a control arrangement (40) configured to control the cooling arrangement (30) to cool the recirculated reject water in the recirculation path (24) in order to cool the RO-membrane (2a).

A filter holder for liposome extrusion includes a housing having an inlet configured to receive a material to be extruded and an outlet, and a filter support member disposed within the housing between the inlet and the outlet. The filter support member includes an upstream side having a filter support surface configured to support a membrane filter assembly, a downstream side opposite the upstream side, and a plurality of passages extending through the filter support member from the filter support surface to the downstream side. The filter holder also includes an outlet cavity in fluid communication with the outlet, and the filter holder is configured such that the material to be extruded flows through the membrane filter assembly and into the outlet cavity via the plurality of passages before being discharged through the outlet.

A membrane distillation apparatus includes a housing and an impeller. The housing includes a hot medium compartment, a cold medium compartment, an air gap compartment, a membrane, and a thermally conductive plate. The hot medium compartment includes a hot medium inlet configured to receive a hot medium stream including water. The cold medium compartment includes a cold medium inlet configured to receive a cold medium stream. The membrane defines pores that are sized to allow water vapor originating from the hot medium stream to pass from the hot medium compartment through the membrane to the air gap compartment. The thermally conductive plate and the cold medium stream are cooperatively configured to condense the water vapor from the hot medium stream. The air gap compartment is substantially filled with air and includes a permeate outlet configured to discharge the condensed water vapor. The impeller is disposed within the air gap compartment.

A method for desalination of hot supersaturated water having a temperature of between 40° C. and 80°, includes contacting the hot water with a reverse osmosis membrane which is resistant to temperatures of between 40 and 80° C. without a prior cooling step.

A method for desalination of hot supersaturated water having a temperature of between 40° C. and 80°, includes contacting the hot water with a reverse osmosis membrane which is resistant to temperatures of between 40 and 80° C. without a prior cooling step.

A fluid filter and method for filtering fluid feed using the fluid filter is described. The fluid filter comprises an upper disk plate having a first compartment spaced apart and placed parallel to a lower disk plate having a second compartment. The feed fluid enters the first compartment in a first vortex pattern in a first direction at a first temperature, and a permeate fluid enters the second compartment in a second vortex pattern in a second direction opposite the first direction at a second temperature, wherein the second temperature is lower than the first temperature. A hydrophobic, vapor permeable membrane positioned between the upper disk plate and the lower disk plate allows vapor to pass from the first compartment to the second compartment having the permeate fluid, thus filtering the feed fluid.

A method of reducing haze by creating a physically stable alcoholic beverage that has been obtained via filtration and separation processes includes receiving retentate from which water has been removed, from a reverse osmosis filter system having an initial alcoholic precursor to the alcoholic beverage in a feed stream, wherein a concentration of alcohol in the retentate has reached between about 10% and 40% by volume, cooling the retentate to a temperature between about 2 degrees below a freezing point of the retentate and a freezing point of the initial alcoholic precursor to the alcoholic beverage in the feed stream, and subjecting the retentate to a clarification process that removes particles having a size of about 0.4-0.8 microns and larger to produce a clarified retentate. The clarification process includes centrifuging, filtration using a filter, and/or forming a supernate and a precipitate and then decanting the supernate.