Thesis (M.S.)--Ohio University, March, 2004. / Title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 69-71)

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2004. / Supervisors: William J. Koros and Donald R. Paul. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.) -- Lincoln University, 2005. / Also available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 2005. Graduate Programme in Environmental Studies. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 158-161). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url%5Fver=Z39.88-2004&res%5Fdat=xri:pqdiss &rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:MR11926

Centrifugal membrane and density separation (CMS) is a novel technology proposed for treatment of waste water and industrial process streams. This cross flow filtration process combines the energy recovery inherent to centrifugal reverse osmosis (CRO) with the potential alleviation of membrane fouling and concentration polarization due to the favourable effects of centrifugal and Coriolis accelerations. This dissertation presents a computational study of CMS undertaken to understand the basic hydrodynamics and mass transfer of the processes and to provide insight for the design of CMS devices. Two distinct membrane models were developed, the porous wall model (PWM) and the source term model (STM), and incorporated into Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) codes which solve the full Navier-Stokes equations coupled to a scalar transport equation which accounts for dissolved species. These models are used to simulate two and three dimensional laminar flows in both non-rotating and rotating reverse osmosis membrane cartridges and to predict permeate fluxes. Plate and frame geometries are first examined and it is determined that CMS benefits most from channels with streamwise directions directed radially. It is also shown that the benefits of CMS can be attributed largely to the secondary flows and mixing associated with Coriolis acceleration, and the PWM and the STM are found to perform similarly in the case of reverse osmosis. Next, the STM is used to perform a parametric study of the flow and mass transfer in rectangular and square rotating channels. It is shown that while normal rotation is preferable to spanwise rotation, relatively small deviations from the spanwise orientation are adequate to achieve most of the normal rotation performance, and that differences between the two orientations are minimal in the case of square channels. Also, the flow characteristics are again shown to correlate well with the magnitude of the Coriolis acceleration. Flows in triangular and circular channels are also considered, and are shown to perform similarly to rectangular channels. These channel orientations have application in hollow fiber membrane modules and potentially in spiral wound membrane modules. Finally, the flow and mass transfer in channels with periodic streamwise obstacles are considered. Such obstacles are related to feed spacers used in spiral wound membrane elements and impact considerably on the flow characteristics and mass transfer performance. Flow obstacles are shown to increase mass transfer performance in all cases, with alternating surface mounted performing best. A preliminary investigation is undertaken into rotating flows with periodic obstacles, and the flow fields are shown to depend strongly on the blockage ratio and on the Rossby number. In most cases, it is found that mass transfer performance does not necessarily correlate with either wall shear stress or the local flow field. Several general conclusions regarding CMS can be drawn from this work. It is preferable to operate a CMS devices at low flow rates, which is contrary to conventional wisdom in membrane separation. Secondly, the mixing induced by channel rotation is both more effective and more efficient than the mixing induced by the feed spacers considered here. Finally, the magnitude of the Coriolis acceleration is the dominant parameter in determining CMS performance. This means that a CMS device can either operate at relatively low rotational speeds with flow in the radial direction, or at higher speeds but lower angles of inclination with respect to the rotational axis. / Graduate

New approaches to the application of membranes for the production of potable water are constantly being sought after in anticipation of future demands for increasingly rigorous water quality standards and reduced environmental impact. A major limitation, however, is membrane fouling, which manifests itself as a continual reduction in flux over time and thus restricts the practical implementation to restore flux. Mechanical and chemical methods have been implemented to restore flux to ultrafiltration systems, but these either result in a break in the process operation or lead to membrane damage or additional pollution problems. This project was aimed to develop a 'defouling on demand' stategy for cleaning membranes used during brown water ultrafiltration. The process involves the use of activatable peroxidase enzymes, which were immobilised onto flat sheet polysulphone membranes. Following flux decline which reaches a critical level with the build-up of the foulant layer, the immobilised enzyme layer was activated by the addition of a chemical activator solution, in this case hydrogen peroxidase and manganous sulphate. Manganese peroxidase was found to be the most effective enzyme at alleviating fouling by degrading the foulant layer formed on the membrane surface and hence restored flux to the ultrafiltration system. A 93% flux improvement was observed when manganese peroxidase was activated when 800uM manganous sulphate, 100mM hydrogen peroxide were added in the presence of a manganese chelator, lactate. The concept and the potential benefits this system holds will be discussed in further detail.

In this study, electrophoretic mobilities of native and two types of trypsin digested sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles have been determined by microelectrophoresis using a Doppler Electrophoretic Light Scattering Analyzer to investigate the influence of hydrodynamic drag, caused by the Ca2+, Mg2+ -ATPase protruding from the surface of native sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles. After the prolonged digestion (protein:trypsin ratio of 20 for 3 hours at 25°C), the ATPase was cleaved and removed from the sarcoplasmic reticulum membrane as shown with SDS gel electrophoresis and an ATPase activity assay. Ionic strength and pH dependence of mobility showed a nearly pH independent increase in initial surface charge density after prolonged digestion. Adsorption isotherms for native, short (protein:trypsin ratio of 200 for 2 minutes at 25°C), and prolonged digested sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles were recorded for TPhP+ (tetraphenylphosphonium), PCP- (pentachlorophenol), and Ca2+, and fitted to the Langmuir adsorption model. The most important result from the adsorption isotherms is that adsorption of the three ions did not increase significantly after prolonged digestion. From this it can be concluded that hydrodynamic drag does not have a measurable influence on electrophoretic mobility of sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles and therefore cannot account for the big differences in mobility between sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles and a comparable artificial membrane system (phosphatidylcholine/phosphatidylserine liposomes), which were observed in this lab earlier. A thermodynamic analysis of adsorption was done for PCP- adsorption to phosphatidylcholine liposomes, TPhP+ adsorption to phosphatidylcholine liposomes, and TPhP+ adsorption to sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles, by recording adsorption isotherms at 10°C, 25°C, 40°C, and 55°C. The adsorption of PCP- to phosphatidylcholine liposomes was clearly driven by enthalpy. In contrast, the adsorption of TPhP+ to phosphatidylcholine liposomes and sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles was characterized by a positive enthalpy and a still larger negative entropy term. The thermodynamic analysis of ion adsorption shows that the driving forces of adsorption are very similar for sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles and the chosen artificial membrane system (phosphatidylcholine liposomes) in spite of the significant lower adsorption of biological membranes compared to artificial membrane systems.

No description available.

Thesis: M.S., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, 1978 / Includes bibliographical references. / M.S. / M.S. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2015. / Fermentation processes are vital for the production of numerous bioproducts. Fermentation being the mass culture of micro – organisms for the production of some desired product, is an extensive field, with immense prospects for study and improvement. Enzyme production is of significance as these proteins are biological catalysts, finding niches in numerous industries, xylanase for example is utilized in the pulp and paper, animal feed, biofuel and food production processes. During enzyme production, a critical step is biomass separation, whereby the valuable product, the enzyme, is removed from the broth or micro – biological culture before it is denatured. This is typically achieved via centrifugation. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate a submerged membrane fermenter system with the specific outcome of increasing the rate of production of xylanase, from the thermophilic fungal species Thermomyces lanuginous DSM 5826. Preliminary shake flask experiments were performed to determine the optimal production conditions, followed by partial characterization of the enzyme. A bioreactor was then fabricated to include a flat sheet membrane module, with outlets for permeate and broth withdrawal and inlets for feed and sterile air input. Experiments were conducted to determine the optimal dilution rate for maximum volumetric productivity. Results from the shake flask experiments indicated that the best conditions for xylanase production, yielding xylanase activity of 5118.60 ± 42.76 U.mL-1 was using nutrient medium containing beechwood xylan (1.5 % w/v), yeast extract (1.5 % w/v), potassium dihydrogen phosphate (0.5 % w/v), adjusted to a pH of 6.5 and inoculated with 1.0 mL of spore solution, rotating in a shaking incubator set to 150 rpm at 50 °C. Apart from analysis of the effect of the carbon source on xylanase activity, coarse corn cobs were used in the shake flask experiments as a cost saving initiative. The pH optima was determined to be 6.5 while the temperature optima of the enzyme was 70 °C. SDS PAGE analysis revealed that the molecular weight of the enzyme was between 25 and 35 kDa and qualitative analysis via a zymogram revealed clear zones of hydrolysis on a xylan infused agarose gel. During short run membrane fermenter experiments the percentage increase in enzyme activity between the batch operation (610.58 ± 34.54 U.mL-1) and semi – continuous operation (981.73 ± 55.54 U.mL-1) with beechwood xylan nutrient replenishment was 60.78 %. The maximum volumetric productivity achieved with beechwood supplementation after 192 hours in semi – continuous operation (5.32 ± 0.30 U.mL-1.hr-1) was 2.1 times greater than that of batch operation (2.54 ± 0.14 U.mL-1.hr-1) which equates to an increase of 110.28 % in productivity measured at its peak. The increase in total activity between batch (610 576.92 U) and beechwood xylan medium supplemented semi – continuous mode (1 184 937.50 U) resulted in a 94.07 % increase. During long run experimental periods, the increase in production of xylanase between the batch (873.26 ± 61.78 U.mL-1) and the xylan medium membrane system (1522.41 ± 107.65 U.mL-1) was determined to be 74.34 % while an overall average increase in productivity between the batch and xylan fed membrane system was 43.25%. The total enzyme activity with in membrane mode with beechwood xylan nutrient medium feed was 160 % greater than the batch process offering a 2.6 – fold increase. Experiments where de – ionized water was alternated with beechwood xylan nutrient medium had no significant impact on the productivity or enzyme activity. The optimal dilution rate for maximum volumetric productivity as determined to be 0.0033 hr-1. The results are indicative of the potential viability of such a design, yielding the desired outcome of a membrane integrated system to significantly increase the production of enzymes during fermentation.