Patent ID: 7517455

Claim:
A method of extracting a dissolved solute from a first liquid to a second liquid, the method comprising: providing an outer chamber; positioning an inner chamber, including a microporous membrane sleeve internally maintaining a frame, within the outer chamber; dispensing the first liquid into the outer chamber; dispensing the second liquid into the inner chamber; wherein the first liquid contacts an exterior of the microporous membrane sleeve and the second liquid contacts an interior of the microporous membrane sleeve, and wherein the microporous membrane sleeve establishes an extraction interface between the first and second liquids; and transferring the solute from the first liquid into the second liquid across the pores of the microporous membrane sleeve; wherein the inner chamber defines a flow region having an upper portion and a lower portion, wherein dispensing the second liquid into the inner chamber includes delivering the second liquid from a liquid source to the lower portion of the flow region, wherein dispensing the second liquid further includes filling the flow region of the inner chamber from the lower portion to the upper portion, and wherein a portion of the volume of the second liquid passes through a restricted flow fluid pathway formed in the frame during the step of filling the flow region.