European Membrane House

- Final MemBridge meeting : 3^rd Round Table and 4^th Industrial Driven Event (April 14^th-15^th 2011. Warsaw, Poland).

This meeting was co-organized by MTB Technologies and the Warsaw University of Technology. It was a successful one with fruitful discussions and good visits. 26 participants were present (List_participants). 

Industrial Event :

- Visit of Secura - Microspun Company (Presentation). It is a filtration production plant and a name of R&D team, as well as a brand name for filtration production made using a metblown technique and sold by Secura Nova Ltd. It is located 18Km from Warsaw.

- 2^nd Partnering Conference. (December 10^th 2010. Moscow, Russia)

2 hot topics in membrane technology were treated during this meeting : " Enzyme-Assisted Membrane Nanoreactors for Biotechnology" and "Gas Separation Processes". The results were positive and effective. Promising perspectives exist also in the development of cooperation in the field of these 2 areas.

This meeting was co-organized by Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis (TIPS). Russia. 28 participants were present 

The topic "Enzyme-Assisted Membrane Nanoreactors for Biotechnology" is the result of exchanges started during the PERMEA congress in Prague (June 2009).  From ideas introduced by different speakers (Professors G.M. Rios, V. Nikonenko, A. Netrusov…). On this occasion, and based on the complementary and synergistic expertises of different groups in EU and Russia/NIS, the project to combine the ability of the native enzymes (to treat some feeds such as biomass) to produce valuable products (amino acids, proteins, organic acids,…), and the membranes to realize selective separation of species, has followed.

- MemBridge meeting :  2^nd Round Table and 3^rd Industrial Driven Event (June 21^st-22^nd 2010. Astana, Kazakhstan)

This meeting was organized by TOO "Membrane Technologies C.A" (MTCA) from Kazakhstan. This company has a strong experience in realization of hybrid schemes including electro- and pressure-driven processes together, with more conventional processes such as ion exchange and coagulation.

15 participants were present at the MemBridge meeting.

The 1^st hot topic selected in the MemBridge project  "Membranes towards Zero Liquid Discharge technologies" was treated during this meeting. This topic is now in the core of attention of ecologists as well as engineers. As said Keith Minnich, Veolia’s vice president of water solutions and technologies, “A ZLD system means that no liquid waste leaves the boundary of the facility”  [Global Water intelligence, 10(12) (2009) 37] (see also Russian Membrane network website, www.rusmembrane.net/, where a discussion on the “hot topics” in the membrane technologies is open). The realization of ZLD systems is difficult if not impossible without membrane technique. In all cases, it foresees the use of hybrid schemes. One of them involves pressure-driven (MF, NF, RO for pre-treatment and desalination) and electro-driven (electro dialysis for deep deionization and high concentration) processes together with membrane contactor/distiller at the phase of solid waste production.