Liquid purification or separation – Processes – Liquid/liquid solvent or colloidal extraction or diffusing...
Patent
1997-05-22
1999-12-14
Fortuna, Ana
Liquid purification or separation
Processes
Liquid/liquid solvent or colloidal extraction or diffusing...
21032175, 210231, 210640, 210490, B01D 6100
Patent
active
060012579
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for the removal of water from liquids, such as organic liquids, biological fluids, foodstuffs, pharmaceutical preparations etc. more particularly it relates to a non-distillation method of removing water from liquids in order to obtain a substantially dry liquid.
In chemical operations it is sometimes necessary to have substantially dry liquids e.g. as solvents, reagents etc. For some liquids it is very difficult to obtain them in a substantially dry state as, for example azeotropic mixtures are formed on distillation and the removal of residual amounts of water can involve difficult and expensive processes such as re-distillation with another organic liquid. These processes can involve the use of harmful chemicals such as benzene and cyclohexane. Other liquids would be degraded thermally by the temperatures require for effective removal of water.
A particular requirement is for the supply of substantially dry liquids for small scale or laboratory use where the liquids need to be stored for a period and the cost of these liquids can be very high.
In the laboratory organic solvents can be left some while before being used and are prone to absorb water from the atmosphere unless strenuous precautions are taken to prevent this.
We have now devised an apparatus and a process which can dehydrate liquids in situ on a small scale without the need for distillation particularly with thermally sensitive compounds.
According to the invention there is provided apparatus for the removal of water from a water-containing liquid, which apparatus comprises a receptacle for the water-containing liquid, a membrane zeolite membrane which can contact the water-containing liquid in the receptacle and a water removal means for removing water separated by the zeolite membrane.
The invention also comprises a chamber at least part of the walls of which comprise a zeolite membrane which has an outlet from which water can be removed. In use the chamber is immersed in the liquid containing water so that only the water can pass into the chamber and thus be separated from the liquid.
There can be a plurality of chambers interconnected to give a larger surface area of zeolite. The chambers can be connected by means of a tube or the like, which leads out of the liquid into which the chamber is immersed.
The zeolite membrane includes zeolitic membranes and membranes made from zeo-type materials.
Zeolitic membranes and membranes which incorporate zeolites are also well known and can come in a range of different types. European Patent Application 0481660 discloses and discusses prior art zeo-type membranes and refers in particular to U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,244,643, 3,730,910 and 4,578,372, Applied Catalysts 49(1989) 1-25, DE-A-3827049, CA1235684, JP-A-63287504, JP-A-63291809, EP-A-180200, EP-A-135069.
Zeo-type materials are also known as molecular sieves which are widely known and used. They comprise an extended network of channels formed from silicon/oxygen tetrahedrons joined through the oxygen atoms. Zeolites and alumino-silicates are the most commonly known form of zeo-type materials and the present invention is applicable to any membrane formed from zeo-type materials and particularly applicable to zeolites and alumino-silicates. In the "Atlas of Zeolite Structure Types", Meier and Ofsen, 1987, Polycrystal Book Service, Pittsburg USA, various types of structure are described and, for example, those described as having LTA, MEL, MFI or TON structure can be used.
In "New Developments in Zeolite Science and Technology Proceedings of the 7th International Conference, Tokyo, 1986, page 103, another class of zeo-type materials are disclosed as crystalline aluminophosphate, silicoalumina phosphates and other metallo-alumino phosphates.
The zeolite membranes are preferably in the form of zeolite crystals grown or deposited on a porous support.
The porous supports on which zeo-type membranes are formed and which can be used in the present invention include those formed of metals, ceramics, gla
REFERENCES:
patent: 5595662 (1997-01-01), Sanderson
patent: 5651888 (1997-07-01), Shimizu et al.
patent: 5744035 (1998-04-01), Geus et al.
patent: 5772735 (1998-06-01), Sehgac et al.
patent: 5779904 (1998-07-01), Ruderman et al.
Bratton Graham J
Buck Karon D
De Villiers Naylor Timothy
Fortuna Ana
Sherer Ronald B.
LandOfFree
Liquid separation by zeolite membranes does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Liquid separation by zeolite membranes, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Liquid separation by zeolite membranes will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-859895