Patent ID: 8596110

Claim:
A method for testing reverse osmosis membranes, comprising the steps of: partially filling a first chamber with a known volume of de-ionized water; partially filling a second chamber with a known volume of brine of known concentration; clamping a flat reverse osmosis membrane to be tested between the first and second chambers so that an open end of the first chamber is positioned against a first surface of the reverse osmosis membrane and an open end of the second chamber is positioned against an opposed second surface of the reverse osmosis membrane; injecting a pressurized inert gas at a known pressure into the second chamber to initiate a reverse osmosis transfer through the reverse osmosis membrane; measuring the concentration of brine in the first chamber at a measured period of time after initiation of reverse osmosis to determine salt rejection by the membrane; and measuring the volume of pure water in the first chamber at a measured period of time after initiation of reverse osmosis to determine flow rate through the reverse osmosis membrane.