2845 results about "Electrodialysis" patented technology

A process and system for purifying water is disclosed. For example, in one embodiment, the process may be used to remove a divalent salt, such as calcium sulfate, from a water source in order to prevent the divalent salt from precipitating during the process. The water source, for instance, may be fed to an ion separating device, such as an electrodialysis device. In the electrodialysis device, an ion exchange takes place between the divalent salt and another salt, such as a monovalent salt to produce two concentrated salt streams that contain salts having greater solubility in water than the divalent salt. In one embodiment, the two salt streams that are produced may then be combined to precipitate the divalent salt in a controlled manner. During the process, various other components contained within the water feed stream may also be removed from the stream and converted into useful products. In one particular embodiment, the process is configured to receive a byproduct stream from a reverse osmosis process.

A method for recovering inorganic salt during processing of a lignocellulosic feedstock is provided. The method comprises pretreating the lignocellulosic feedstock by adding an acid or a base to the feedstock to produce a pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock. A soluble base or acid is then added to the pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock to adjust the pH and produce a neutralized feedstock. The neutralized feedstock is then hydrolyzed to produce an hydrolyzed feedstock and a sugar stream. Inorganic salt is recovered from a wash stream obtained from the pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock, a stream obtained from the neutralized feedstock, a stream obtained from the sugar stream, or a combination of these streams. The inorganic salt may be concentrated, clarified, recovered and purified by crystallization, electrodialysis, drying, or agglomeration and granulation, and then used as desired, for example, as a fertilizer.

The present invention relates to composite solid polymer electrolyte membranes (SPEMs) which include a porous polymer substrate interpenetrated with an ion-conducting material. SPEMs of the present invention are useful in electrochemical applications, including fuel cells and electrodialysis.

Sodium chloride and purified water are recovered by treating salt water that contains sodium chloride with an integrated reverse osmosis and electrodialysis system, which includes an efficiency-enhancing feature that is one or more of the following: the use of univalent anion and univalent cation selective membranes in the electrodialysis unit; the addition of a nanofiltration unit to process the diluate from the electrodialysis unit; or operation of the electrodialysis unit at an elevated pressure. Magnesium and bromine can optionally be produced when the salt water contains these materials.

A method and apparatus for extracting CO2 from air comprising an anion exchange material formed in a matrix exposed to a flow of the air, and for delivering that extracted CO2 to controlled environments. The present invention contemplates the extraction of CO2 from air using conventional extraction methods or by using one of the extraction methods disclosed; e.g., humidity swing or electro dialysis. The present invention also provides delivery of the CO2 to greenhouses where increased levels of CO2 will improve conditions for growth. Alternatively, the CO2 is fed to an algae culture.

The present invention provides a system and method for selectively removing organic and inorganic contaminants from plating baths. More particularly, the invented method relates to the use of a source of energy in combination with chemical oxidants, alone or in conjunction with a catalyst to oxidize organic contaminants in the plating bath to a level such that the electroplating bath can be recovered and reused after appropriate chemical adjustment. The oxidative treatment method may be a continuous process or a batch process that is performed in a single pass and the endpoint of the oxidative process detected by a sensor. Residual organics, and chloride ions in the bath are removed from the solution by a chemisorption or physisorption treatment. Inorganic contaminants are removed from the electroplating bath by selective ion exchange resins or electrodialysis, while particulate and suspended colloidal particles are removed by filtration before the treated plating bath is recycled.

The invention relates to a method and a device for separating magnesium and lithium and enriching the lithium from salt lake brine. The method comprises the following steps of: separating an electrodialyzing device into two areas by using an anion exchange membrane, namely a lithium salt chamber and a brine chamber, filling the salt lake brine in the brine chamber, and filling a supporting electrolyte solution which does not contain Mg<2+> in the lithium salt chamber; placing a conducting matrix coated by an ionic sieve in the brine chamber as a cathode; placing the conducting matrix coated by a lithium-embedded ionic sieve in the lithium salt chamber as an anode; under the driving of an external electric potential, embedding Li <1+> in the brine in the brine chamber into the ionic sieve to form the lithium-embedded ionic sieve, and recovering the lithium-embedded ionic sieve into the ionic sieve after the lithium-embedded ionic sieve in the lithium salt chamber releases the Li <1+> into a conducting solution; and discharging a liquid in the brine chamber after the lithium is embedded, adding the salt lake brine again, alternatively placing electrodes in the two chambers, and repeating and circulating operations. Through the method and the device for separating magnesium and lithium and enriching lithium in the salt lake brine, the separation of the lithium and other ions is effectively realized, and a lithium-enriched solution is synchronously obtained. The method has a short flow and low production cost, is simple to operate, can be operated continuously, and is easy to industrially apply.

The invention discloses a method and device for utilizing sewage containing ammonia and sodium. The method comprises the steps of deamination reaction, denitrification reaction, gas-liquid separation, triple-effect multistage evaporation, evaprative crystallization and freezing crystallization, electrodialysis and sodium filteration membrane, and concentration of reverse osmosis membrane, so that distilled water and membrane deion pure water are recovered, and the resource utilization of sole sodium chloride and sodium sulfate is realized.

The present invention relates to composite solid polymer electrolyte membranes (SPEMs) which include a porous polymer substrate interpenetrated with a water soluble ion-conducting material. SPEMs of the present invention are useful in electrochemical applications, including fuel cells and electrodialysis.

A process and system for purifying water is disclosed. For example, in one embodiment, the process may be used to remove a divalent salt, such as calcium sulfate, from a water source in order to prevent the divalent salt from precipitating during the process. The water source, for instance, may be fed to an ion separating device, such as an electrodialysis device. In the electrodialysis device, an ion exchange takes place between the divalent salt and another salt, such as a monovalent salt to produce two concentrated salt streams that contain salts having greater solubility in water than the divalent salt. In one embodiment, the two salt streams that are produced may then be combined to precipitate the divalent salt in a controlled manner. During the process, various other components contained within the water feed stream may also be removed from the stream and converted into useful products. In one particular embodiment, the process is configured to receive a byproduct stream from a reverse osmosis process.

An integrated treatment system using electrodialysis and pressure-driven membranes for deionizing and decontaminating liquids to a near-pure quality for use or reuse in industrial or municipal operations. The integrated system includes steps of pre-filtering contaminated feed liquids blending the filtered liquids in preparation for treating the mixed liquids in parallel or sequential treatment steps utilizing nanofiltration or reverse osmosis, proceeded by or followed by an integrated electrodialysis treatment. A control means selectively directs mixed liquids to each of the treatment units for treatment in parallel or in series depending on the conductivity and residual contaminants in the mixed liquids. In comparison with nanofiltration or reverse osmosis only systems, or electrodialysis only systems, the integrated system provides improved efficiencies for treatment, requires less energy to operate, and reduces maintenance and capital costs.

The invention relates to a membrane and evaporation crystallization integrated process with zero discharge of high-salinity industrial wastewater. The process is as below: carrying out ultrafiltration pretreatment on industrial wastewater and sending the wastewater to a reverse osmosis process through a high-pressure pump; reusing lateral infiltration water; conducting electrodialysis treatment on a concentrate subjected to several times of filtration; evaporating and crystallizing the materials obtained from electrodialysis concentration to obtain salt slurry and water; carry outing posttreatment on the salt slurry; and reusing condensed water. The process provided by the invention couples membrane and evaporation crystallization, not only can recover high quality purified water from industrial wastewater with high salinity but also can realize zero discharge of wastewater with high salinity, and has the characteristics of low energy consumption, low production cost and advanced process.

A method and apparatus for extracting CO2 from air comprising an anion exchange material formed in a matrix exposed to a flow of the air, and for delivering that extracted CO2 to controlled environments. The present invention contemplates the extraction of CO2 from air using conventional extraction methods or by using one of the extraction methods disclosed; e.g., humidity swing or electro dialysis. The present invention also provides delivery of the CO2 to greenhouses where increased levels of CO2 will improve conditions for growth. Alternatively, the CO2 is fed to an algae culture.

The present invention relates to a method for zero-release treatment of brine waste water, comprising: (1) pretreatment; (2) reverse osmosis treatment; (3) advanced oxidation treatment; (4) biochemical treatment; (5) electrodialysis concentration; (6) circulating crystallization. Compared with the prior art, the method for zero-release treatment of brine waste water provided in the present invention realizes zero release or near zero release of waste water, improves salt recovery efficiency, can recover high-quality sodium sulfate, mirabilite and sodium chloride, and turns crystalline salts into a resource; the membrane treatment unit can operates stably in the process for a long operation period at a low cost, and the entire process has high economic efficiency.

A method for recovering inorganic salt during processing of a lignocellulosic feedstock is provided. The method comprises pretreating the lignocellulosic feedstock by adding an acid to the feedstock to produce a pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock. A soluble base is then added to the pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock to adjust the pH and produce a neutralized feedstock. The neutralized feedstock is then enzymatically hydrolyzed to produce an enzyme hydrolyzed feedstock and a sugar stream. Inorganic salt is recovered from either a stream obtained from the lignocellulosic feedstock prior to the step of pretreating, a stream obtained from the pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock, a stream obtained from the neutralized feedstock, a stream obtained from the sugar stream, or a combination of these streams. The inorganic salt may be concentrated, clarified, recovered and purified by crystallization, electrodialysis drying, or agglomeration and granulation, and then used as desired, for example as a fertilizer.

The invention discloses a zero-emission integrated process for treatment and reuse of high-salinity wastewater. The invention relates to a softening desalination treatment technology of water and particularly relates to a reuse treatment system for reverse osmosis concentrated water containing low-concentration organic matters which can achieve the requirement of 'zero emission'. The integrated process comprises the following steps: (1) firstly softening and pre-treating the high-salinity wastewater; (2) acquiring pre-treated water by virtue of activated carbon adsorption and an ultrafiltration device; (3) acquiring nanofiltration softened water and nanofiltration concentrated water by virtue of a nanofiltration device; (4) acquiring reverse osmosis softened water and reverse osmosis concentrated water by virtue of a reverse osmosis device; (5) acquiring electrodialysis softened water and electrodialysis concentrated water by virtue of an electrodialysis device; and (6) carrying out evaporation crystallization treatment on the electrodialysis concentrated water by virtue of an evaporation-crystallization device, regularly outwards transporting salts generated by the evaporation crystallization, feeding generated salt into a water-producing tank to enter a reuse system and finally completing the treatment and reuse of high-salinity wastewater. The integrated process is mainly used for the integrated treatment of the high-salinity wastewater.

The invention relates to a method and device for dialysis and or bulk fluid removal by generating a fibrosis chamber within a body cavity and performing dialysis or bulk fluid removal. An implantable medical device is described having a fibrosis chamber and a pump. A dialysis chamber and an optional electrodialysis unit can further be provided. An additional controller uses sensory feedback to regulate the fluid levels by altering the extracellular fluid retention within the fibrosis chamber. This device can be used for the treatment of patients with chronic kidney disease who may also be suffering from cardiorenal syndrome and hypertension.

The present invention provides a system and method for selectively removing one or more organic and also preferably one or more inorganic contaminants from plating baths. More particularly, the invented method relates to the use of a source of energy in combination with chemical oxidants, alone or in conjunction with a catalyst to oxidize organic contaminants in the plating bath to a level such that the electroplating bath can be recovered and reused after appropriate chemical adjustment. The oxidative treatment method may be a continuous process or a batch process that is performed in a single pass and the endpoint of the oxidative process detected by a sensor. Residual organics, if desired, and chloride ions in the bath are removed from the solution by a chemisorption or physisorption treatment. Inorganic contaminants are removed from the electroplating bath by selective ion exchange resins or electrodialysis, while particulate and suspended colloidal particles are removed by filtration before the treated plating bath is recycled.

Process for producing sodium bicarbonate for purifying flue gases, according to which an aqueous solution containing sodium sulfate is subjected to electrodialysis to produce a sodium hydroxide solution and a sodium bisulfate solution, the sodium hydroxide solution being carbonated in order to obtain sodium bicarbonate.

An electrodialysis method and apparatus include a source of concentrate fluid, a source of dilute fluid, a collector of treated concentrate fluid, a collector of dilute fluid, an anode and a cathode. A plurality of generally planar spacers are interleaved with a plurality of membranes to define a plurality of cells providing electrically conductive fluid connection between the anode and the cathode. Each of the spacers comprises a gasket that defines a first aperture and a second aperture. Each of said first and second apertures define an independent cell between interleaved membranes. The symmetrical, multiple split cell spacer configuration channels fluid flow through two or more narrow and elongated paths. The split cell arrangement allows for operation of the stack in parallel or in series. The invention improves the ion removal efficiency of a given membrane area, requires significantly less energy than other electrodialysis systems and substantially reduces stack assembly, materials and fabrication costs.

The invention relates to a process and a device for extracting battery grade lithium from brine. The process comprises the following steps: adding an adsorbent into the brine to adsorb lithium ions in the brine, intercepting the adsorbent by using a ceramic membrane filter, performing plate-frame pressure filtration on the ceramic membrane concentrated solution to obtain an adsorbent filter cake, washing and desorbing the adsorbent filter cake so as to obtain a desorption solution; removing magnesium in the desorption solution through a nanofiltration membrane system, entering the nanofiltration membrane permeate into an ion exchange resin tower for performing deep magnesium removal, concentrating through a reverse osmosis membrane, performing deep concentration in a DTRO membrane or electrodialysis equipment, evaporating the concentrated solution, adding BaCl2, Na2CO3 and NaOH into the solution, stirring, filtering in a ceramic membrane filter, performing plate-frame pressure filtration on the ceramic membrane filtrate, adding Na2CO3 into the clear liquid, preparing Li2CO3, washing Li2CO3 through a ceramic membrane, centrifuging, and drying, thereby obtaining the finished battery grade Li2CO3 product.

A method for producing lactic acid, comprising producing lactic acid from a sugar-containing fermentation liquid in a fermentor by means of lactic acid-forming bacteria to result in a lactate salt, typically ammonium, sodium or potassium lactate, and isolating lactic acid by subjecting the fermented fermentation liquid to a first ultrafiltration step to result in a substantially polymer-free permeate comprising at least one lactate salt, acidifying the permeate to a pH value of below about 3.9, performing at least one additional isolation step in which the acidified permeate is subjected to nanofiltration and / or reverse osmosis, and preferably subjecting the resulting product to electrodialysis using bipolar electrodialysis membranes. Fermentation is preferably performed using whey protein as a nutrient substrate and by adding at least one protein-hydrolysing enzyme directly to the fermentor during the fermentation process so that hydrolysis of protein to amino acids takes place simultaneously with the fermentation of sugar into organic acid.

The invention relates to a reproduction method for sodium-base flue gas desulfurization liquid, which is characterized in that the flue gas desulfurization liquid containing sodium sulphite and sodium bisulfite is oxidized to a solution containing sodium sulfate, the solution containing sodium sulfate is electrolyzed to a sodium hydroxide solution and a sulfuric acid solution by using bipolar membrane electrodialysis. According to the invention, the electrolytic conversion rate of sodium sulfate can reach more than 90%, the obtained sodium hydroxide solution can be used as absorption liquid for a flue gas desulfurization tower, the sulfuric acid by-product is produced simultaneously. By-product sulfuric acid can be used as sulfuric acid for treating high hardness and high alkalinity. The reproduction method for sodium-base flue gas desulfurization liquid is capable of achieving the purposes of strong brine zero-draining, comprehensive resource utilization and cost reduction.

A method for recovering inorganic salt during processing of a lignocellulosic feedstock is provided. The method comprises pretreating the lignocellulosic feedstock by adding an acid to the feedstock to produce a pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock. A soluble base is then added to the pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock to adjust the pH and produce a neutralized feedstock. The neutralized feedstock is then enzymatically hydrolyzed to produce an enzyme hydrolyzed feedstock and a sugar stream. Inorganic salt is recovered from either a stream obtained from the lignocellulosic feedstock prior to the step of pretreating, a stream obtained from the pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock, a stream obtained from the neutralized feedstock, a stream obtained from the sugar stream, or a combination of these streams. The inorganic salt may be concentrated, clarified, recovered and purified by crystallization, electrodialysis drying, or agglomeration and granulation, and then used as desired, for example as a fertilizer.

The present invention relates to a process for the separation and purification of lactic acid from a fermentation medium wherein the lactic acid is totally or partially in the form of a salt or salts. The lactic acid producing microorganisms are separated from the other components of the fermentation medium. This solution is concentrated and then acidified to a pH below or equal to 3. The acidified solution is passed over a cation exchange resin to give a fraction that has maximum of 25% lactic acid salts relative to the dry weight of the solution. This fraction is subjected to bipolar fractionating electrodialysis. The resulting lactic acid is further purified, concentrated and then recovered.

A treatment system and method for continuous deionization of a biologically derived feed stream includes a plurality of electrodialysis units (3, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13) arranged in stages along a treatment line, and stages are controlled such that the feed stream attains a certain quality before entering the next stage. The feed and concentrate streams move in generally opposite sense along the line, matching fluid characteristics of dilute and concentrate cells. The treatment line has two or more stages. Systems may have phased staging operations, and cell constructions may adapt the electrodialysis units for enhanced processing of difficult process fluids. A controller sets operating potentials in different electrical stages, and simple control parameters optimize ion removal and current efficiency without polarization of the fluid. The invention also includes phased staging of reversal operation, and cell constructions or fillings that adapt the treatment cells for enhanced processing.

A method for recovering inorganic salt during processing of a lignocellulosic feedstock is provided. The method comprises pretreating the lignocellulosic feedstock by adding an acid or a base to the feedstock to produce a pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock. A soluble base or acid is then added to the pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock to adjust the pH and produce a neutralized feedstock. The neutralized feedstock is then hydrolyzed to produce an hydrolyzed feedstock and a sugar stream. Inorganic salt is recovered from a wash stream obtained from the pretreated lignocellulosic feedstock, a stream obtained from the neutralized feedstock, a stream obtained from the sugar stream, or a combination of these streams. The inorganic salt may be concentrated, clarified, recovered and purified by crystallization, electrodialysis, drying, or agglomeration and granulation, and then used as desired, for example, as a fertilizer.