Liqui-Cel® membrane contactors have been used for over 20 years to remove dissolved gases from liquids or to add gasses to liquids. These deaeration devices are capable of O2 removal to < 1ppb and CO2 down to < 1ppm. Liqui-Cel® liquid degassers are designed to tolerate high pressures and temperatures and are capable of processing flow rates from 5ml/min to hundreds of m³/hr.
Liqui-Cel® – liquid degassing to control water purity
It is well known that high purity water is required in most pharmaceutical processing plants where conductivity requirements of < 1.3µS/cm are common. It is also known that to achieve this level of water purity, dissolved carbon dioxide has to be removed. In the past, this was accomplished by injecting NaOH into the purification system. However, this method incurs additional costs because of the need to handle and dispose of chemicals.
In recent years, Liqui-Cel® membrane contactors have taken over this role because membrane contactors do not use chemicals to extract the dissolved CO2 and they are small, compact devices that can be easily installed in-line.
Product applications for de-ionized water
EDI and CDI technologies have become more common applications for producing de-ionized water. However, in order to maximize the efficiency of an EDI or CDI system, the CO2 has to be removed. Liqui-Cel® membrane contactors have become the technology of choice for removing the carbon dioxide deaeration. As the operational efficiency improves, fewer EDI stacks are required and the volume of chemicals required to regenerate the beds is also less; this provides cost savings for the plant.
Oxygen removal to extend shelf life
By removing dissolved O2 membrane contactors provide even more benefits to the pharmaceutical industry. It is known that the presence of oxygen can negatively affect the shelf life and stability of some products; Liqui-Cel® membrane contactors offer a simple, effective solution to remove dissolved O2 in processes where products would be impacted by its presence.
FDA compliance and reduced risk of contamination
Liqui-Cel® contactors operate in closed systems unlike outdated forced draft deaerator technology (FDA). FDAs introduce many airborne contaminants to the water system because they use large blowers that draw in high volumes of atmospheric air. Because external contaminants are not introduced with a closed Liqui-Cel® system, it is the superior choice for liquid degassing. Several Liqui-Cel® membrane contactor sizes are available in FDA compliant materials.