Tortuous path for prevention of polarization in electrodialysis

Claim 1

AN APPARATUS FOR TREATING SEPARATE VOLUMES OF IONIC SOLUTION BY TRANSFERING IONS OF BOTH POLARITIES FROM CERTAIN FLUID CONTAINING CHAMBERS INTO OTHER FLUID CONTAINING CHAMBERS, THE APPARATUS COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL MEMBRANES, CERTAIN MEMBRANES BEING PERMEABLE TO IONS OF ONE POLARITY AND PASSAGE RESITANT TO IONS OF THE OPPOSITE POLARITY, OTHER MEMBRANES BEING PERMEABLE TO IONS OF THE OPPOSITE POLARITY, SAID MEMBRANES BEING PROVIDED WITH RAISED MARGINAL SEALING PORTIONS ALONG WHICH THE MEMBRANES REST AGAINST ONE ANOTHER IN SEALING RELATIONSHIP TO FORM FLUID CHAMBERS, SAID MEMBRANES FURTHER COMPRISING SEALING RIBS INTERGRAL WITH THE MEMBRANES EXTENDING FROM A MARGINAL SEALING PORTION ACROSS THE BODY OF THE MEMBRANES AND TERMINATING SHORT OF THE OPPOSITE SEALING PORTION, ADJACENT SEALING RIBS EXTENDING FROM OIPPOSITE SIDES, THEREBY FORMING A FLUID CHANNEL COMPOSED OF SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL CHANNEL PORTIONS TURNED BACK UPON THEMSELVES, SPACER ELEMENTS BETWEEN SAID RIBS, SAID SPACER ELEMENTS BEING INTERGRAL WITH THE MEMBRANE AND BEARING AGAINST THE NEXT MEMBRANE FOR POSITIVELY SPACING THE MEMBRANES APART, SAID SPACER ELEMENTS BEING SUBSTANTIALLY SYMMETRICAL WITH RESPECT TO THE TWO MEMBRANES BETWEEN WHICH THEY EXTEND, SO AS TO IMPEDE THE FLOW ALONG THE TWO MEMBRANE SURFACES EQUALLY, THE RIBS OF AT LEAST CERTAIN MEMBRANES BEING CONVERGENT SO AS TO PRODUCE BETWEEN THEM A CHANNEL OF PROGRESSIVELY DECREASING WIDTH FROM ONE END OF THE CHANNEL TOWARDS THE OTHER, SAID MEMBRANES FURTHER INCLUDING DUCT FORMING REGISTERING APERTURES IN SAID MARGINAL PORTIONS, SAID APERTURES LEADING TO THE ENDS OF THE CHANNEL FORMED BY THE RIBS.

Claim 2

AN APPARATUS FOR TREATING SEPARATE VOLUMES OF IONIC SOLUTION BY TRANSFERING IONS OF BOTH POLARITIES FROM CERTAIN FLUID CONTAINING CHAMBERS INTO OTHER FLUID CONTAINING CHAMBERS, THE APPARATUS COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL MEMBRANES, CERTAIN MEMBRANES BEING PERMEABLE TO IONS OF ONE POLARITY AND PASSAGE RESITANT TO IONS OF THE OPPOSITE POLARITY, OTHER MEMBRANES BEING PERMEABLE TO IONS OF THE OPPOSITE POLARITY, SAID MEMBRANES BEING PROVIDED WITH RAISED MARGINAL SEALING PORTIONS ALONG WHICH THE MEMBRANES REST AGAINST ONE ANOTHER IN SEALING RELATIONSHIP TO FORM FLUID CHAMBERS, SAID MEMBRANES FURTHER COMPRISING SEALING RIBS INTERGRAL WITH THE MEMBRANES EXTENDING FROM A MARGINAL SEALING PORTION ACROSS THE BODY OF THE MEMBRANES AND TERMINATING SHORT OF THE OPPOSITE SEALING PORTION, ADJACENT SEALING RIBS EXTENDING FROM OIPPOSITE SIDES, THEREBY FORMING A FLUID CHANNEL COMPOSED OF SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL CHANNEL PORTIONS TURNED BACK UPON THEMSELVES, SPACER ELEMENTS BETWEEN SAID RIBS, SAID SPACER ELEMENTS BEING INTERGRAL WITH THE MEMBRANE AND BEARING AGAINST THE NEXT MEMBRANE FOR POSITIVELY SPACING THE MEMBRANES APART, SAID SPACER ELEMENTS BEING SUBSTANTIALLY SYMMETRICAL WITH RESPECT TO THE TWO MEMBRANES BETWEEN WHICH THEY EXTEND, SO AS TO IMPEDE THE FLOW ALONG THE TWO MEMBRANE SURFACES EQUALLY, THE RIBS OF AT LEAST CERTAIN MEMBRANES BEING CONVERGENT SO AS TO PRODUCE BETWEEN THEM A CHANNEL OF PROGRESSIVELY DECREASING WIDTH FROM ONE END OF THE CHANNEL TOWARDS THE OTHER, SAID MEMBRANES FURTHER INCLUDING DUCT FORMING REGISTERING APERTURES IN SAID MARGINAL PORTIONS, SAID APERTURES LEADING TO THE ENDS OF THE CHANNEL FORMED BY THE RIBS.