A water treatment device using a hollow fiber membrane module is provided, including: a water container filled with raw water; a hollow fiber membrane module installed in the water container and provided with hollow fiber membranes therein to perform water treatment by a water pressure difference; and a raw water supplying part positioned on the water container, and configured to supply the raw water into the water container through the hollow fiber membrane module, in which the hollow fiber membrane module causes the raw water supplied from the raw water supplying part collide with the hollow fiber membrane to move the hollow fiber membrane, so that it is possible to minimize contamination of the hollow fiber membrane, minimize use of energy using electricity, and wash the hollow fiber membrane by a physical method.

Methods for controlling a spinning membrane separator so as to limit fouling of the membrane by changing the rotation rate of the spinning membrane in response to the fouling rate, while maintaining a constant outlet cellular concentration. Increasing the spinner rotation rate will increase the strength of the Taylor vortices generated within the separator by the spinning of the membrane, which should reduce fouling of the membrane. The goal of the method is to rotate the spinning membrane at the slowest rate possible without unacceptable fouling. Two specific methods to control fouling are disclosed. In a first, unidirectional method, the spin rate of the membrane is only increased in response to undesirable fouling in order to prevent the fouling from continuing. In a second, bidirectional method, the spin rate of the membrane may be either increased or decreased in response to the measured fouling rate in order to maintain the fouling rate within a desired range.

A desalination system (100) having an intake unit (110) providing seawater to a pre-treatment unit (120) connected to a reverse osmosis (RO) desalination unit (130) and a post treatment unit (150). The desalination system (100) is configured to operate without any external addition of chemicals to simplify logistics and regulation concerns. The units of the system are configured to prevent biofouling, scaling and corrosion by mechanical and biological means including high flow speeds, biological flocculation of colloids, and making the water entering the RO units inhospitable to bacteria and other organisms that cause biofouling, hence preventing their settlement and removing them with the brine. Recovery rate is lowered and energy is recovered to increase the energetic efficiency and minerals that are added to the product water are taken from the brine.

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.

Systems and methods for performing hemodialysis to remove metabolic waste from the blood of a patient are disclosed. The systems and methods preferably comprise at least one blood processing apparatus that receives whole blood from a patient. Cellular blood components are removed from the whole blood by hemofiltration, to provide filtered plasma comprising metabolic waste that is substantially reduced of blood cells. The cellular blood components may be returned to the patient. The filtered plasma comprising waste may be removed from the blood processing apparatus through a waste path for further processing in a separate apparatus, or in the same apparatus in a second stage processing procedure to remove metabolic waste components and excess water from the plasma by hemodialysis. At least one of the hemofiltration and hemodialysis processing apparatus comprises a Taylor vortex-enhanced separation apparatus.

A bubble generation device intermittently generates large bubbles in a liquid phase. The bubble generation device includes a bubble storing container, a pivot, and a pair of edge portion receivers. The bubble storing container stores bubbles generated by a gas supply nozzle in the liquid. The pivot allows the bubble storing container to pivot thereon, thereby releasing the large bubbles from the bubble storing container. The pair of edge portion receivers receives and blocks an edge portion of the bubble storing container to limit pivot of the bubble storing container. An inside of the bubble storing container is partitioned by a partition that is installed in an axial direction of the pivot.

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.

A high velocity cross flow dynamic membrane filtration system disc membrane assembly includes a frame having first and second end members and a plurality of rails extending between the first and second end members. At least two parallel support shafts are coupled to the frame, each support shaft defining a longitudinal axis about which is positioned a plurality of axially spaced membrane discs. The plurality of membrane discs associated with one of the at least two parallel support shafts is interspersed between the plurality of membrane discs associated with another of the at least two parallel support shafts. Each rail of the plurality of rails is configured to be received by a mounting rail within a vessel defining a treatment chamber. A permeate tube is coupled to each support shaft and in fluid communication with the membrane discs associated with that support shaft.

It is to intermittently and effectively generate large bubbles in a liquid phase. A bubble generation device 1 intermittently generates large bubbles a2 in a liquid phase. The bubble generation device 1 includes a bubble storing container 3, a pivot 4, and a pair of edge portion receivers 5a, 5b. The bubble storing container 3 stores bubbles a1 generated by a gas supply nozzle 2 in the liquid. The pivot 4 allows the bubble storing container 3 to pivot thereon, thereby releasing the large bubbles a2 from the bubble storing container 3. The pair of edge portion receivers 5a, 5b receives and blocks an edge portion of the bubble storing container 3 to limit pivot of the bubble storing container 3. An inside of the bubble storing container 3 is partitioned by a partition 30 that is installed in an axial direction of the pivot 4.

Provided is a filtration device including: a flow path that meanders; a filtration membrane that separates a supply side and a permeation side of the flow path; a first distribution port that is provided at one end of the supply side of the flow path; a second distribution port that is provided at the other end of the supply side of the flow path; a first discharge port that is provided on the permeation side of the flow path; and a second discharge port that is provided at a position different from that of the first discharge port on the permeation side of the flow path. First liquid feeding for allowing a liquid flowed in from the first distribution port to flow out from the second distribution port, and second liquid feeding for allowing a liquid flowed in from the second distribution port to flow out from the first distribution port are alternately performed. A liquid that has passed through the filtration membrane is discharged from the first discharge port while the first liquid feeding is performed, and a liquid that has passed through the filtration membrane is discharged from the second discharge port while the second liquid feeding is performed.