Membrane contactors

In contact membrane processes, the membrane acts as a stabilizer of different phases in contact (and not as a filter).

Osmotic evaporation, membrane evaporation, membrane distillation and extraction are operations of membrane contact which are very attractive for the treatment of biological solutions or aqueous effluents.

Our works have a large range of applications, from the fruit juices or polymer concentration, water distillation, effluents concentration, to aromatic compounds or metal ions extraction … by different configurations and geometries (flat membranes, tubular ones or hollow fibers).

In our works, the modeling of coupled heat and mass transfers enable to state relationships between structural properties of membranes and operating conditions with the process efficiency, and thus to reach a process optimization.

Copper (II) extraction with TFA in a hollow-fiber membrane contactor: Qaq = Qorg = 3.33×10-6 m3.s-1, Daq = 2.8×10-9 m².s-1, Vaq = Vorg = 1×10-3 m3; organic phase flows in flow-cell (shell side), T=313 K; diluent, (a) 1-decanol, (b) MIBK.

Contacts:

José SANCHEZ, Marie-Pierre BELLEVILLE, Stéphanie BOCQUET-DRUON.