Characterization of hemodialysis membranes: membrane structure and function

Since the late 1960s cellulosic hollow-fiber membranes have been used in artificial kidneys, in which they act as a separation barrier for metabolic waste. The mass transport behavior of these membranes has been fairly well investigated since then. Relatively little, however, is known about the structure of the membranes. The objective of this thesis is to acquire fundamental knowledge about the structure and its relation to the performance of cellulosic hollow-fiber hemodialysis membranes. For this purpose various up-to-date membrane characterization techniques were used. Throughout this thesis special attention is paid to three different types of hollow-fier hemodialysis membranes: cuprophan®, hemophan® and RC-HP400A. The RC-HP400A fiber is a so-balled high-flux type membrane. The cuprophan and RC-HP400A are made of a regenerated cellulose. The cellulose of hemophan fibers has been modified with a small amount of positively charged N,N-di-ethyl-aminoethyl (DEAE) ether groups.