Patent ID: 7927544

Claim:
A paracorporeal respiratory assist lung, comprising: a housing having an upper portion and a lower portion, the housing including a liquid inlet located in the upper portion of the housing, a liquid outlet, a gas inlet and a gas outlet; a plurality of tubular gas permeable fiber membranes configured to form a stationary fiber bundle, the fiber bundle having a length and being disposed within the housing and connected to and in fluid communication with the gas inlet and the gas outlet; a first gap configured between the housing and the fiber bundle; a rotatable cylindrical core disposed within the fiber bundle, an outer cylindrical surface of the core having a length substantially equal to that of the fiber bundle; a second gap configured between the outer cylindrical surface of the core and the fiber bundle; a liquid distribution impeller located at an upper portion of the rotatable core and in fluid communication with the liquid inlet, the liquid distribution impeller having an exit port on the outer cylindrical surface of the core, the exit port being located exclusively on the upper portion of the core; and means for rotating the core, wherein the housing, fiber bundle and core are configured such that liquid entering the liquid inlet travels to the impeller and from the impeller is discharged only into the upper portion of the housing through the second gap, past the fiber bundle, through the first gap, the rotation of the core causing liquid to circulate through and around the fiber bundle substantially along the length of the fiber bundle and eventually into the liquid outlet.