A membrane module apparatus to transfer a gas to or from a liquid has a sheet having at least one gas transfer surface. The gas transfer surface is in flow communication with a header through a gas channel. The module may be used to support a biofilm on the gas transfer surface. A plurality of sheets or portions of sheets may be separated by spacers.
This application is (1) a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 10/801,660 filed Mar. 17, 2004 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,169,295 which is (i) a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 10/777,204 filed Feb. 13, 2004 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,118,672 which is an application claiming the benefit under 35 USC 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/447,025 filed Feb. 13, 2003 (ii) an application claiming the benefit under 35 USC 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/496,178 filed Aug. 18, 2003; and (iii) a continuation of PCT Application Ser. No. PCT/CA2004/000206, filed Feb. 13, 2004 (2) an application claiming the benefit under 35 USC 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/496,178 filed Aug. 18, 2003; and (3) a continuation-in-part of PCT Application Ser. No. PCT/CA2004/000206, filed Feb. 13, 2004. This application also claims priority from Canadian Patent Application Nos. 2,438,444; 2,438,441; 2,438,432; 2,438,050; and, 2,438,101 all filed Aug. 22, 2003. All of the applications listed above are incorporated herein in full by this reference to them.
Priority Data
Aug 22, 2003 [CA] 2438050 Aug 22, 2003 [CA] 2438101 Aug 22, 2003 [CA] 2438432 Aug 22, 2003 [CA] 2438441 Aug 22, 2003 [CA] 2438444
A bioreactor system for microbiological treatment of wastewater including: at least one highly-flexible substrate for providing a superficial environment conducive for supporting biomass growth, the substrate including: (a) a large plurality of threads disposed in a generally longitudinal direction and including a plurality of synthetic filaments, and (b) at least two cross-support elements disposed across and associated with the plurality of threads, so as to provide support for and loosely associate the threads, wherein openings defined by (i) adjacent threads of the threads, and (ii) adjacent cross-support elements of the elements, have an aspect ratio exceeding 50 to 1.
