Steven C Ackerman

US Patent:

20040222157, Nov 11, 2004

Filed:

Feb 6, 2004

Appl. No.:

10/773789

Inventors:

Bhupender Minhas - Bridgewater NJ, US
Dennis Peiffer - Annandale NJ, US
Jorge Soto - Centreville VA, US
David Stern - Baton Rouge LA, US
Tomas Melli - Haymarket VA, US
Jeffrey Beck - Clinton NJ, US
Steven Ackerman - Fairfax VA, US
David Dalrymple - Bloomsbury NJ, US
Alexander Fremuth - Boothwyn PA, US
Walter Weissman - Basking Ridge NJ, US
Frederick Krambeck - Alexandria VA, US

International Classification:

B01D061/00

US Classification:

210/651000, 210/650000, 210/488000, 210/490000

Abstract:

A method for recovering acid from a feed mixture comprising acid, hydrocarbons and water, the method comprising: processing said mixture using a first polymeric membrane to form a first retentate containing a substantially greater concentration of hydrocarbons than said feed mixture and a first permeate containing a substantially greater concentration of acid and water than said mixture, said first polymeric membrane being selectively permeable to the acid and water over the hydrocarbons found in the mixture, and recovering the first permeate; said first permeate can be processed further using a second water reduction mean to form a first stream containing a substantially greater concentration of acid than said first permeate and a second stream containing a substantially greater concentration of water than said first permeate, said water reduction step may be a second polymeric membrane being selectively permeable to the water over the acid in said first permeate; and recovering said second stream or retentate.