SHEAR ENHANCED TRANSPORT IN OSCILLATORY LIQUID MEMBRANES

A novel procedure for dramatically increasing solute fluxes through supported liquid membranes, which should be readily realizable both in the laboratory and in process size equipment, is described. The imposition of a periodic pressure gradient transverse to the membrane is shown to increase the effective diffusivity of large molecules through the membrane by as much as two orders of magnitude or more, effectively eliminating the resistance to mass transport provided by the bulk of the liquid membranes. The enhancement provided by this periodic motion is superficially similar to that found in Taylor-Aris dispersion for steady flow in that the dispersion arises from the diffusion of the solute between streamlines with differing velocities.