Industrial Mathematics Group

Separation Science: a theoretical, experimental and industrial union
28-30 June 2023

Organizers: Ian Griffiths (Oxford), Guy Ramon (Technion) & Uwe Beuscher (W.L. Gore & Associates)

Objectives

Recent years have seen a surge in the number of applications utilizing membranes, from large-scale separations in the chemical, pharmaceutical and water sectors, to biomedical devices and sensors. While many of the early advances have been made by empirical and experimentally driven approaches, mathematical modeling and simulation have started to become more commonplace in the membrane field for supporting experimentation, interpretation of results, and exploring mechanistic hypotheses. With the growing number of applications and the need for tailored membrane properties and separation capabilities, mathematical and physical modeling and prediction of material properties, energy efficiency, and environmental sustainability is driving a growing interest in developing better quantitative membrane models on a material, membrane, and process scale. The goal for this workshop is to bring together researchers with expertise in membrane science and related fields at the various length scales to build a community for modeling membrane properties, membrane transport, and membrane processes. We are envisioning this as the first in a series of workshops for developing state of the art models for the advancement of membrane science and technology.

Venue, accommodation and travel

• The venue of the workshop is The University of Oxford's Mathematical Institute. You can find out more about travelling to the Mathematical Institute here. The workshop will take place in lecture theatre L4, which is located on the mezzanine level of the Mathematical Institute. Classroom C1 is also available for breakout discussions, and is also located on the mezzanine level.

Workshop schedule

Wednesday 28 June

• 9:00-9:20: Arrival, Lecture Room L4, Mezzanine
• 9:20-9:40: Ian Griffiths, Guy Ramon and Uwe Beuscher - Overview and goals of the workshop and introductions

Opening challenges

• 9:40-10:20: Andrew Livingston - Modelling membrane separations - fact or fiction?
• 10:20-11:00: John Linkhorst - Visualization and modelling of concentration boundaries from particles to ions

Transport inside polymers (continuum and mesoscale)

• 11:30-12:10: Viatcheslav Freger - Modelling ions in membranes: have we done it right so far and can we do better?
• 12:10-12:50: Hassan Massoud - Mesoscale modeling of transport through polymer networks

Industrial challenges

• 2:15-2:55: Sal Giglia - Modeling the impact of device design on ultrafiltration tangential flow filtration performance.
• 2:55-3:35: Gareth Morris (Dyson) - Challenges in designing multiscale, multispecies filtration in domestic cleaning environments

4:00 onwards: Breakout sessions in L4 and C1

Thursday 29 June

Network models

• 9:30-10:10: Linda Cummings - Network pore models for membrane filtration
• 10:10-10:50: Arkady Wey - A network-continuum multiscale model for filtration

Multiphysics

• 11:20-12:10: Cristian Picioreanu - Challenges in multiphysics modelling of membrane filtration processes
• 12:10-12:50: Bastiaan Blankert - The discrepancy between nominal and effective membrane charge density in reverse osmosis

Industrial challenges

• 2:15-2:55: Chris Conklin - Challenges and opportunities applying academic models to industry problems
• 2:55-3:35: Sourav Mondal and Raka Mondal - Water electrolysis for the production of (green) hydrogen: Insights into the transfer process through the membrane electrolyte

4:00 onwards: Breakout sessions in L4 and C1

Friday 30 June

Dirt filtration

• 9:30-10:10:Ellen Luckins (Oxford) - Drying of a dirty porous medium. What kinds of problems can our modelling address?
• 10:10-10:50: Melih Toklu (Beko) - Filters for tumble dryers (lint collection), dishwashers (dirt and oil filtration), air quality products (CO2, VOC and pathogens) and alternative to reverse osmosis water filtration.

• 11:20-12:30: Reporting back on discussions thoughts for the future and workshop conclusion