Multimembrane apparatus for demineralizing liquids

Claim 1

IN A SOLUTION TREATMENT APPARATUS, A MULTIPLICITY OF GENERALLY PARALLEL ION MEMBRANES DEFINING THIN WALLED RECEPTACLES IN A COMPARTMENTED ARRANGEMENT, THE RECEPTACLES BEING INDIVIDUALLY ADAPTED TO RECEIVE AND DISCHARGE A SOLUTION AND HAVE INTIMATELY ASSOCIATED THEREWITH INPUT AND OUTPUT SOLUTION DISTRIBUTING ASSEMBLIES WHICH ARE RESPECTIVELY OPERATIVE TO FACILITATE SUPPLYING AND WITHDRAWING THE SOLUTIONS OF THE SAID INDIVIDUAL RECEPTACLES, EACH SOLUTION DISTRIBUTING ASSEMBLY COMPRISING AN INTEGRAL MANIFOLDING DUCT ELEMENT HAVING AN EXTENDED OPENING THEREIN, SAID DUCT ELEMENT EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY THROUGH ALIGNED OPENINGS IN THE MEMBRANES OF SAID RECEPTACLES, A MULTIPLICITY OF SOLUTION CHANNELING DEVICES SUPPORTED ON SAID DUCT ELEMENT OVER SAID EXTENDED OPENING THEREOF IN AN ARRANGEMENT ALIGNED WITH SAID MEMBRANE OPENINGS WHEREBY EACH DEVICE INDIVIDUALLY RESIDES WITHIN A SEPARATE ONE OF SAID RECEPTACLES IN CONTACT WITH MEMBRANES ABOUT THE SAID OPENINGS, EACH OF SAID DEVICES COMPRISING THE IMPROVEMENT AND INCLUDING TWO SEPARATE ELEMENTS IN CONTACT, AN AXIAL CAVITY ENCLOSED WITHIN EACH SAID ELEMENTS, A PLURALITY OF CHANNELS EXTENDING IN SEVERAL DIRECTIONS FROM SAID CAVITY TO OPENINGS AT THE OUTER EDGES OF THE ELEMENTS, BOTH SAID ELEMENTS HAVING CORRESPONDING CENTRAL OPENINGS IN WHICH THE DUCT ELEMENT IS MAINTAINED TO PASS THROUGH SAID ENCLOSED CAVITY, AND SAID OUTER EDGE OPENINGS BEING IN COMMUNICATION WITH SAID RECEPTACLE CONTAINING THE DEVICE WHEREIN SAID CHANNELS COMPLETE FLOW PATHS BETWEEN SAID DUCT ELEMENT AND SAID RECEPTACLE THROUGH SAID EXTENDED OPENING IN SAID DUCT ELEMENT, AND SAID ENCLOSED CAVITY OF THE DEVICE.