Hollow fiber membranes

Hollow fiber membranes

In 1995, MEDICA S.p.A developed its first hollow-fibre Polysulphone (PS) membrane, becoming the only Italian manufacturer of high-tech membranes used for medical purposes and for blood and water purification applications.

A hollow fibre is a tubular-shaped membrane with a dense wall thickness of nano- and micropores that acts as a sieve, providing complete protection to the passing liquid based on the size of the holes and the adsorptive capacity of the membrane itself.

The MediSulfone® ultrafiltration membrane was developed to meet the growing demand for broad-spectrum filter membranes for water and water-based solutions. Its superior filtration capabilities is due to the structure of the membrane: the inner wall (1 micron thick) has a high density of small pores (nominal size 0.005 µm), resulting in a molecular weight cut-off of 15 kDa, while the rest of the structure has a finger-like configuration, consisting of macro-voids having a mainly structural function (Figure 1).

Thanks to the extremely low cut-off and the adsorption capacity of the polymer surface, the MediSulfone® UF membrane is characterised by excellent performance in the purification of aqueous solutions from bacteria, viruses and endotoxins.

The Versatile-PES® membrane was developed to meet the growing demand for broad-spectrum filter membranes for blood, plasma and water solutions. Thanks to its structure (polyethersulfone and polyvinylpyrrolidone polymer mix), which ensures an average pore size in the microfiltration range (approximately 0.2 μm) and good mechanical strength, Versatile-PES® is mainly used in plasma filtration and water microfiltration. More recently, additional versions of the Versatile PES® membrane with differential cut-offs (from 150 kDa to 800 kDa) have been developed for plasma fractionation applications.

Below is a summary of the main membranes developed by Medica with their main characteristics and applications:

Membrane	MWCO (KDa)	Dimensioni Fibra (µm): Ø int./ spess. parete	Applicazioni
M-PES low flux	10÷15	210/40 and 900/100	Low Flux Dialysis
M-PES high flux	40÷50	210/40	High Flux Dialysis
Medisulfone® ULTRA	15÷20	250/50	Water ultrafiltration
Medisulfone® EMO	40÷50	250/50	Hemofiltration Concentrator
Humidification fiber	n.a.	250/50 and 250/65	Vapor transfer cartridge
Versatile-PES® Small	120÷180	210/40	Apheresis
Versatile-PES® Medium	350÷450	210/40	Apheresis
Versatile-PES® Large	750÷850	210/40	Apheresis
Versatile-PES® 0.15 µm	1.000÷1.200	300/85 and 900/150	Micro/plasma filtration
Versatile-PES® 0.45 µm	1.400÷1.600	300/85	Microfiltration

Medisulfone® e Versatile-PES® sono marchi registrati Medica S.p.A.