Membrane Selection Method for Filtration Scaling Uncertainty
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Solution Overview
Problem
The variability in membrane performance during manufacturing limits the precision of scaling up filtration devices from small to large scale, necessitating the use of liberal safety factors to account for uncertainty, leading to potential over- or under-sizing of filtration systems and increased costs.
Innovation Solution
Selecting a narrow range or subset of qualified membranes for scaling devices and determining their specific performance within the distribution to adjust the scaling factor, thereby reducing performance uncertainty and scaling safety factors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If membranes with wide performance range are used in scaling devices, then manufacturing flexibility is improved, but performance consistency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by selecting membranes with specific performance characteristics (within a defined range of the distribution) for scaling devices, rather than using membranes with wide performance variations. This ensures that the scaling device uses membranes with consistent and representative performance, improving prediction accuracy while maintaining manufacturing flexibility through controlled selection criteria.
2Reliability
If liberal safety factors are applied in scaling estimates, then reliability of full-scale system performance is improved, but device sizing increases leading to higher costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter approach by using the actual measured performance of the scaling device membrane (within a defined range of the distribution) to determine the scaling factor, rather than applying a fixed liberal safety factor. This allows for more accurate and cost-effective sizing of full-scale systems while maintaining reliable performance predictions.
3Ease of operation
If small scale devices use membranes from the entire performance distribution, then ease of membrane selection is improved, but scaling precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-defining the acceptable performance range (e.g., within one standard deviation of the mean) for membranes to be used in scaling devices. This preliminary specification simplifies the selection process while ensuring that only membranes with representative and consistent performance are used, thereby improving scaling prediction precision.
Data Source
AI summary
Method of reducing performance variability of membrane scaling devices. Scaling device performance uncertainty is reduced, thereby reducing the scaling safety factor, by specifying a narrow range or subset of the set of all qualified manufactured membranes for installation into scaling devices. In certain embodiments, the scalability factor is reduced by determining where within the performance distribution a particular membrane lies, and adjusting the scaling factor accordingly.