Stefan-Maxwell analysis of protein transport in porous membranes

Conference · Sat Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 1988 · Sep. Sci. Technol.; (United States)

OSTI ID:5995856

Robertson, B C; Zydney, A L

The Stefan-Maxwell multicomponent diffusion equations were used to characterize albumin transport in ultrafiltration membranes in both an unstirred batch filtration device and a well-stirred diffusion cell. The authors developed a theoretical model for ultrafiltrate flux and concentration in the filtration device that explicitly incorporates the effects of protein polarization, protein osmotic pressure, and a flux-dependent sieving coefficient. Experimental data were in good agreement with model predictions, providing quantitative evidence for the predicted dependence of the apparent sieving coefficient on flux. Experimental data in the diffusion cell indicate that the effective albumin diffusivity in the 50,000 molecular weight cut-off membranes was four orders of magnitude less than the Brownian motion value. The Stefan-Maxwell diffusivities evaluated independently in the two experimental systems were in excellent agreement, indicating the general applicability of the Stefan-Maxwell approach to protein transport in ultrafiltration membranes.

• Research Organization: Univ. of Delaware, Newark (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5995856
• Report Number(s): CONF-871038-
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Sep. Sci. Technol.; (United States) Journal Volume: 23:12,13
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
400105* -- Separation Procedures
ALBUMINS
DATA
DIFFUSION
EQUATIONS
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FILTRATION
INFORMATION
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MEMBRANE TRANSPORT
MEMBRANES
MOLECULAR WEIGHT
NUMERICAL DATA
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OSMOSIS
PREDICTION EQUATIONS
PROTEINS
SEPARATION PROCESSES
ULTRAFILTRATION