Pleated membrane filters, which offer larger surface area to volume ratios than unpleated membrane filters, are used in a wide variety of applications. However, the performance of the pleated filter, as characterized by a flux-throughput plot, indicates that the equivalent unpleated filter provides better performance under the same pressure drop. Earlier work {[Sanaei~& Cummings 2016, Journal of Fluid Mechanics, {795 }, 36-59]} used a highly-simplified membrane model to investigate how the pleating effect and membrane geometry affect this performance differential. In this work, we extend this line of investigation and use asymptotic methods to couple an outer problem for the flow within the pleated structure to an inner problem that accounts for the pore structure within the membrane. We use our new model to formulate and address questions of optimal membrane design for a given filtration application.

中文翻译：

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褶膜过滤器的建模和设计优化

褶状膜过滤器的表面积与体积之比比无褶膜过滤器大，可用于多种应用。但是，以通量-通量图为特征的褶状过滤器的性能表明，在相同的压降下，等效的褶状过滤器可提供更好的性能。早期工作{[Sanaei〜＆Cummings 2016，流体力学杂志，{795}，36-59]}使用高度简化的膜模型来研究打褶效果和膜几何形状如何影响这种性能差异。在这项工作中，我们扩展了这一研究范围，并使用渐近方法将打褶结构内流动的外部问题与解释膜内孔结构的内部问题耦合在一起。