C O N T A C T I M P R I N T L E G A L   P A G E T E R M S / C O N D I T I O N S
ABOUT INDUSTRIAL
MEMBRANE SPECIALITIES
FILTRATION SPECTRUM
AND PRODUCT OVERVIEW
PRODUCTS FOR
PROCESS FILTRATION
PRODUCTS FOR THE
HEALTHCARE INDUSTRY
FILTER DEVICES
MICROFILTRATION
ULTRAFILTRATION
KEY DEFINITIONS
PRODUCTS FOR LIQUID
GAS TRANSFER
FOR PRINT VERSION  
 FOR:
 Dead-end filtration
 Cross-flow filtration
 Hydrophobic, hydrophilic
  Bubble point test [BP]:
    The bubble point procedure is a commonly used test method to characterise a membrane and monitor product consistency and quality. The bubble point itself is a determination of the minimum pressure (bubble point) at which a wetting liquid is pressed out of the pore system of a membrane while forming a steady bubble chain. The bubble point test procedure is also a common method of determining the maximum pore size.
  Cross-flow Filtration:
    In crossflow filtration, a fluid (feed) stream runs tangential to a membrane, establishing a pressure differential across the membrane. This causes some of the particles to pass through the membrane. Remaining particles continue to flow across the membrane, "cleaning it". In contrast to the dead -end filtration technique, the use of a tangential flow will prevent thicker particles from building up a "filter cake".
  Dead-end filtration:
    In the dead-end filtration technique all the fluid passes through the membrane, and all particles larger than the pore size of the membrane are retained at its surface. This means that the trapped particles start to build up a "filter cake" on the surface of the membrane, which has an impact on the efficiency of the filtration process.
  Downstream side:
    The filtrate side of the membrane.
  Feed:
    The fluid/gas that has not passed the membrane and has therefore not been filtered.
  Filtration:
    A process of removing particles of different diameters from a fluid or a gas by passing it through a permeable material, such as a membrane.
  Filtrate:
    The fluid/gas that has already passed through the membrane.
  Hydrophobic:
    Membranes characterised as hydrophobic repel water. They have little or no tendency to absorb water, so that a droplet remains on the surface.
  Hydrophilic:
    Hydrophilic membranes have an affinity for water. Their surface chemistry allows these materials to be wetted spontaneously.
  Inner diameter [ID]:
    A value characterising the geometry of a capillary or tubular membrane. The wall thickness and the outer diameter of a membrane are the other essential parameters for characterisation of a capillary or tubular membrane.
  Maximum Pore Size [PGmax]:
    A calculated value gained from the results of the bubble point test. The maximum pore size is theoretically the largest pore within the pore structure of a membrane.
  Microfiltration
    Microfiltration is a way of removing contaminants in the size range of 0.1 to 10.0 µm from fluids or gases,by passage through a microporous medium such as a membrane. There are two techniques used in microfiltration: dead-end filtration, where microfiltration is widely used, and cross-flow filtration, using a tangential flow for the fluid being filtered. Microfiltration is used in both production and analytical applications, such as
- Filtration of particles from liquid or gas streams
  for different industries, e.g.chemical or pharmaceutical
- Production of pure water
- Clarification and sterile filtration
- Waste water treatment
  Pore size:
    The pore size is usually stated in micrometers (µm) and refers to the diameter of particles a membrane is likely to retain to a defined degree of efficiency.
  Through-put:
    A very practical characterisation technique for a microfiltration membrane. The intention is to evaluate the achievable filtrate output during the life-time of a filter: i.e. the total volume of a specific fluid that passes through the membrane before it must be replaced. The terms dirt holding capacity or high loading capacity are also used.
  Trans-membrane flow [TMF]:
    A measurement of the transmembrane flow is carried out to document the membrane performance regarding its flow characteristics. The TMF is defined as the initial volume of liquid passing through the membrane wall within a given unit of time, related to surface area and pressure, and expressed in ml/min cm² bar.
  Ultrafiltration:
    Ultrafiltration is a process similar to microfiltration. The main difference is the "tighter" retention behaviour: the ultrafiltration membrane retains much smaller particles from the passage through the membrane than do microfiltration membranes. Typically the particle size is measured by molecular - weight, and ultrafiltration membranes have retention ranges from 1,000 to 1,000,000 molecular weight.
  Upstream side:
    The feed side of the membrane.

PORTAL HOME ABOUT MEMBRANA
MEMBRANA RESEARCH
MEMBRANES FOR HAEMODIALYSIS
MEMBRANES FOR OXYGENATION, APHERESIS AND I.V. FILTRATION
INDUSTRIAL MEMBRANE SPECIALITIES
ACCUREL SYSTEMS