Ex Parte Cote et al - Page 2

              Appeal 2007-1768                                                                     
              Application 10/377,647                                                               

                           BRIEF STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION                                        
                    Appellants’ invention is directed to a method for cleaning one or more         
              filtering membranes.  The claimed method includes flowing a chemical                 
              cleaner in pulses through the membranes while the tank water is being                
              drained or is below the level of the membranes.  Representative independent          
              claim 16, as presented in the Brief, appears below:                                  
                    16   A method for cleaning one or more filtering membranes normally            
                    immersed in tank water containing solids in a tank and used to                 
                    produce a permeate in one or more cleaning events, each cleaning               
                    event comprising the steps of:                                                 
                          (a) stopping permeation;                                                 
                          (b) draining the tank water from the tank to below the level of          
                    the membranes:                                                                 
                    and,                                                                           
                          (c) while the tank water is being drained or is below the level of       
                    the membranes, flowing a chemical cleaner in pulses through the                
                    membranes in a direction opposite to the direction in which water lean         
                    in solids normally permeates through the membranes;                            
                    and,                                                                           
                          (d) refilling the tank,                                                  
                    wherein,                                                                       
                          (e) the cleaning events are performed at least once a week; and.         
                          (f) the product of the concentration of the chemical cleaner             
                    expressed as an equivalent concentration of NaOCl in cleaning                  
                    efficacy and the duration of all cleaning events in a week is between          
                    2,000 minutes*mg/L and 20,000 minutes*mg/L.                                    




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