Membrane & Separation Technology News articles from December 2005

Membrane & Separation Technology News archives from December 2005

REVERSE OSMOSIS Process Makes Scarce Resource More Abundant.
December 1, 2005... In two projects funded through New Mexico's Innovative Water Fund, petroleum consultants have tested a multi-step process, which includes RO, for treating produced water. The treatment method could turn brackish water generated during oil and...

Oscillating Water Column Cuts Desalination Cost.
December 1, 2005... Two Australian companies, Energetech and H2AU, have teamed to turn seawater to a low cost potable supply by using ocean waves to power RO desalination systems. By directly using wave power, an abundant and consistent energy source, the process...

ULTRAFILTRATION Wastewater Recovery Benefiting Tanneries.
December 1, 2005... Based on the successful operation of UF/RO-based wastewater recovery plants at two of India's largest leather tanning factories, Koch Membrane Systems (KMS) will provide UF and RO units to another wastewater recovery plant at M.A. Khizar...

ELECTROCHEMICAL Fuel Cells Meet Durability Milestones.
December 1, 2005... Membrane durability has always been a key technical challenge faced by fuel cell manufacturers, as it translates directly to fuel cell lifetimes. Fuel cell longevity and causes for failure primarily revolve around the membrane and its...

AWS Launches EDI Evaluation Service.
December 1, 2005... Applied Water Systems (AWS) is offering customers a new service designed to optimize the operation of electrodeionization (EDI) systems. The electrodeionization evaluation program (EEP) can address potential issues with reliability, process...

GAS SEPARATION Soaking, Rolling Improves Thermal Stability.
December 1, 2005... Scientists at the Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology have patented a method for preparing a composite silica membrane with improved thermal stability by a soaking-rolling method. The manufacturing process involves rolling the...

MEMBRANE SENSORS Ion Transport Measured In Chip-Based Channel.
December 1, 2005... As part of an $11.7 million, multi-collaborative DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Project Agency) project to develop hybrid biomolecular devices, Arizona State University (ASU) electrical engineers have integrated an artificial cell membrane...

Device Detects Mercaptans In Parts Per Million.
December 1, 2005... Russian chemists have developed a small hand held device that detects tiny levels of mercaptans in petroleum derivatives, permitting real-time control of these sulfur compounds during refinery operations. At the heart of the sensor is a...

MATERIALS Nanotubes Enable Super-Fast Fluid Flow.
December 1, 2005... In a study conducted at the University of Kentucky (UK), scientists have discovered that membranes made from nearly friction-free carbon nanotubes permit fluid flow 10,000 to 100,000 times faster than the predictions of conventional fluid flow...

INDUSTRY NEWS Disposables Streamline Vaccine Manufacture.
December 1, 2005... At the 10th Annual China International Pharmaceutical Industry Exhibition in Shanghai, Pall Corp. Director of Marketing for Life Sciences Ian Sellick described how the use of disposable, scalable membrane and filter technologies to purify large...

EU Projects Boost MBR Development.
December 1, 2005... The European Commission has decided to further the development and application of European membrane bioreactor processes for municipal wastewater treatment by financing two projects "AMEDEUS" and "EUROMBRA" within the 6th Framework Program....

AFS Offering CEUs for Short Course Programs.
December 1, 2005... The American Filtration & Separations Society (AFS) has begun offering continuing education credits (CEUs) to attendees of its Filtration Short Courses. CEUs will be awarded according to standards set by the engineering community. AFS has...

CALENDAR.(Calendar)
December 1, 2005... April 23-27, AIChE 2006 Spring National Meeting, Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort, Orlando, FL, Contact: Meetings Department, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, 3 Park Ave, New York, N.Y., 10016-5991; Tel: 212/591-7338, Fax:...

CORRECTION.
December 1, 2005... The Commentary in November's MST mistakenly categorized the membranes in Arbortech Corp.'s UF systems as ceramic. They are titanium dioxide/stainless steel.

(((NEWS BRIEFS)).
December 1, 2005... Zenon to Continue USFilter Suit On October 31, the court rejected several of USFilter's (Palm Desert, CA) arguments for summary judgement in the dispute relating to Zenon Environmental's (Ontario, Canada) U.S. Patent 6,620,319, "Apparatus for...

PRODUCTS.
December 1, 2005... Koch Launches 18" Diameter SWRO Products Koch Membrane Systems, Inc. (KMS, Wilmington, MA) has introduced MegaMagnum RO elements and fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) pressure vessels for seawater desalination applications. The unprecedented...

RESEARCH.
December 1, 2005... Ceramic Could Cut LNG Plant Costs by One Third Japanese companies Chubu Electric Power (Nagoya, Japan) and Noritake (Nagoya, Japan) have developed a ceramic membrane that separates oxygen from other substances in air. The ceramic material...

FUNDING.
December 1, 2005... Vaperma to Demonstrate Dehydration Process Sustainable Development Technology Canada has allocated $42.5 million in funding for 15 clean technology projects, including an advanced membrane process for biofuel dehydration. Vaperma Inc. (Ste-Foy,...

PEOPLE.
December 1, 2005... USFilter Names Two New VPs Siemens (Munich, Germany) has made two management changes at its USFilter business (Palm Desert, CA). Chuck Gordon has been named executive vice president of USFilter's Systems business and Kevin Trant has been named...

WHO'S WHO IN MEMBRANE TECHNOLOGY Microsieves Filter Atomizes, Emulsifies.
December 1, 2005... We spoke with Cees van Rijn is the founder of Aquamarijn, a Netherlands-based firm established to commercialize microsieve membranes, high flux MF membranes fabricated by silicon micromachining. Below are his comments. MST: How did you...

INDUSTRY INSIGHT Polymer Electrolyte Membranes for Fuel Cells, Part 1:.
December 1, 2005... By Vijay K. Ramani, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology, 10 West 33rd Street; 127 PH, Chicago, IL 60616; Tel: 312/ 567-3064, Fax: 312/567-8874;...

Solid Electrolyes.
December 1, 2005... The amount of ionic groups in an ionomer is generally presented in terms of either equivalent weight (EW) or ion exchange capacity (IEC). EW is defined as the number of grams of polymer / mole of the ionic group. IEC is defined as the number of...

Figure 1 Perfluorosulfonic Acid Ionomer Structure.
December 1, 2005... A good PEM should possess the following properties: * High proton conductivity over a wide range of temperatures and relative humidities * Excellent barrier properties (i.e. very low gas and methanol permeabilities) * Sufficient...

High Cost.
December 1, 2005... Extensive studies have been performed to determine the interrelationships between structure, extent of hydration and properties in Nafion. From these studies, one can readily conclude that Nafion satisfies many requirements. However: the...

Superior Conductivity.
December 1, 2005... Since the conductivity of the membrane through a vehicular mechanism depends on the ability of water (the vehicle) to move through the membrane, lower water permeability crudely translates to lower conductivity. In terms of selectivity (ratio...