Membrane Separation Principle used for Gas Drying Processes in Fuel Cells and Life Support Systems

Separators for gas drying are used for Fuel Cell Power Plants (FCPP) and for Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLS). A new separator type is the Membrane Separator (MS), which enables smaller weight and geometries and needs less energy than conventional known mechanical separator techniques for space applications.

This paper describes different membrane separation principles in accordance to their application on FCPP and ECLS. The development and test of a MS module with inorganic porous membranes for the Hermes FCPP are described in detail.

The successful results of the tests are illustrated. Further activities like module optimization and investigations about ECLS application are presented.