Abstract: A material is dewatered by providing a material having a first water percentage content; and encapsulating the material in a plurality of non-porous hydrophilic membranes, said membranes being of a type in which water molecules are absorbed by and transported across the non-porous hydrophilic membrane, thereby producing packages with a second water percentage content that is lower than the first water percentage content.

Abstract: An evaporation device has an inner tube and an outer tube. The inner tube is made of a hydrophilic membrane, such as DutyionT. The outer tube is preferably made of a material that readily absorbs solar radiation and is a good heat conductor. There is a gap between the inner tube and the outer tube for the flow of air. The inner tube contains a flow of impure water. The hydrophilic membrane allows water to pass to the outside of the inner tube as vapor, but prevents impurities from passing through. Air flowing in the gap takes up the water vapor and humidified air exits the evaporation device. This humidified air is subsequently cooled to collect the vapor and provide purified water, e.g. at a condenser.

Abstract: Water vapor is introduced into an inlet air stream (16) of an engine (12), for example, by a pervaporation process through a non-porous hydrophilic membrane (18). A water reservoir (20), which can contain contaminated water, provides a vapor pressure gradient across the hydrophilic membrane (18) into the inlet air stream (16), while the rate of delivery of the water vapor to a cylinder (38-40) is self-regulated by the rate of flow of air across the membrane. The hydrophilic membrane (18) therefore also filters the water from the water reservoir (20) to an extent that pure water vapor is provided to the air inlet stream (16). Delivery of water vapor can nevertheless be controlled using a hood (26) that slides over the hydrophilic membrane to limit its exposed surface area.

Abstract: A mechanical water still (10) includes an impervious dome-like upper surface (12) and a membrane base (14) that is coupled (26) to the impervious dome-like structure (12) to form, when inflated, a chamber (20). The membrane base (14) supports a water pervaporation process therethrough. A water collection well (16) has an opening into which water droplets condensed from the water pervaporation process collect. The water collection well (16) is sited within the membrane base (14) and generally extends outwardly and downwardly from the membrane base (14), as shown in FIG. 1. In use, a contaminated water source (24) is brought into, ideally, complete contact with the membrane base (14), with the water collection well (16) arranged both to act as a heat sink into the water source (24) and to provide stability to the water still (10) when floating and immersed in the water source (24).

Abstract: An irrigation device is provided, the device comprising a container for water consisting of a plurality of surfaces, each surface substantially being either a hydrophilic membrane or impervious to water in all forms, and wherein at least one of the surfaces is substantially a hydrophilic membrane and at least one of the surfaces is substantially impervious to water in all forms.

Abstract: A display system for motor vehicles provides an array of lamps at the rear of a subject vehicle to provide an indication of the state of motion of the subject vehicle to the driver of a following vehicle. In a first mode of operation, the display indicates a level of warning dependent upon the rate of deceleration of the subject vehicle, the level of warning being determined by deceleration thresholds which are variable in dependence upon the measured speed of the subject vehicle. In a second mode of operation, the lamps provide an indication of the subject vehicle being stationary or near stationary as determined by comparing the measured speed with a threshold speed. An animate display is created by illuminating the lamps and sequentially deactuating selected pairs of lamps to create a pattern cyclically moving semetrically outwardly from the center of the row. The display is discontinued when the speed of the subject vehicle exceeds a second threshold defined independently of the first threshold speed.