Oxygen permeability of carbon-surfaced microporous membranes.

A study was conducted to measure the permeability to oxygen (PmO2) of microporous membranes coated with ultra-low-temperature isotropic (ULTI) carbon. Carbon-surfaced membranes were fabricated by application of a thin complete layer (0.7 to 1.7 microns thick) of ULTI carbon onto one surface of a microporous substrate. Based upon the average values of 27 measurements in a diffusion cell, a mean reduction in PmO2 of only 10% results following the treatment of the microporous substrate with ULTI carbon. The values for PmO2 are not dependent upon the thickness of the carbon film over the range of film thickness of 0.7 to 1.7 microns. When coupled with the known antithrombotic characteristics of ULTI carbon, an oxygenator incorporating carbon-surfaced microporous membranes has the potential for use in clinical extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).