Patent ID: 10471394

Abstract:
A method for producing a microporous membrane includes providing a microporous starting membrane having outer surfaces and pores with inner surfaces extending between the outer surfaces of the membrane and having a microporous starting membrane permeability. The method impregnates the membrane with an impregnating solution consisting essentially of a solvent and a polymer. The polymer is an organic substance with an average molecular weight of at least 500 g/mol and may be selected from the group consisting of poly(2-ethyloxazoline), polyvinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate (PVP-VA) and mixtures thereof. The method then includes irradiating the impregnated membrane with electron beam radiation to provide a crosslinked reaction product constituting a three-dimensional network formed of the microporous starting membrane and the polymer without any decomposition of the microporous starting membrane. The microporous starting membrane permeability is not reduced by more than 10% by fixing the electron beam radiation crosslinked polymer thereto.