Further discussions on the representation of hemodialyzer performance.
To express the solute-removing capacity of a dialyzer, two diagrams are used in combination: one to represent the relation between the mass transfer coefficient and the solute molecular weight (M), and the other between the extraction ratio and the number of mass transfer units. It is shown that membrane permeation properties can be deduced from the first diagram, a limiting factor of removal can be understood from the second diagram, both can be used to compare performances with different blood or dialysate flow rate (QB or QD) or membrane area, and this method of representing dialyzer performance is more informative than the conventional ones in which dialysance (DB) is plotted against QB or M. Discussion is also given on the conditions under which the relation between DB and log M, or log DB and log M, becomes linear. Numerical evaluation of DB/QB for cross-flow geometry is presented in the Appendix.
D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D001790:Blood Physiological Phenomena; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007688:Kidneys, Artificial; D008433:Mathematics; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D008970:Molecular Weight; D010539:Permeability; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D012996:Solutions
D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D012996:Solutions