REMOVAL OF VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS FROM GASEOUS EFFLUENT STREAMS BY NOVEL PERFLUOROMEMBRANES

VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUND (VOC) EFFLUENT STREAMS ARE A SERIOUS AIR POLLUTION PROBLEM. CONTROL TECHNOLOGIES FOR VOCS HAVE BEEN OXIDATION OR CARBON ABSORPTION BUT RECENTLY MEMRANES HAVE SHOWN EFFECTIVENESS. PRESENT MEMBRANE PROCESSES WORK BY PREFERENTIALLY PASSING VOCS (VERSUS AIR) THROUGH THE MEMBRANE AND THEN COMPRESSING AND CONDENSING OUT DOWNSTREAM VOCS. ADVANTAGES OF THIS MEMBRANE PROCESS INCLUDE SIMPLICITY, CONTINUOUS OPERATION, EXCELLENT SMALL VOLUME ECONOMICS, AND COMPACTNESS. KEY LIMITATIONS OF EXISTING MEMBRANE PROCESSES INCLUDE (1) EXCESS COSTS FROM EXTRA PUMPING STAGES WHENEVER VOCS PERMEATE THE MEMBRANE AND (2) HIGH DESIGN COSTS SINCE MEMBRANE-VOC INTERACTIONS MUST BE STUDIED IN EACH CASE. COMPACT MEMBRANE SYSTEMS, INC., PROPOSES DEVELOPING A NOVEL FAMILY OF PERFLUOROPOLYMER MEMBRANES HAVING HIGH AIR PERMEABILITY, LOW VOC PERMEABILITY, AND CHEMICAL INERTNESS. THESE PERFLUORO-POLYMER MEMBRANES SHOULD GIVE (1) REDUCED CAPITAL AND OPERATING COSTS DUE TO STAGING EFFICIENCIES SINCE VOC STAYS ON HIGH PRESSURE SIDE OF MEMBRANE AND (2) LOW COST STANDARDIZED UNIVERSAL DESIGN SINCE PERFORMANCE IS BASED PRIMARILY ON KNOWN AIR PERMEABILITIES VERSUS VARIABLE VOC PERMEABILITIES. THEREFORE, DEVELOPING THESE FLUOROPOLYMER MEMBRANES WILL SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE VOC RECOVERY COSTS.