Design of hollow fiber modules for uniform shear elution affinity cell separation

Large-scale monoclonal antibody based systems for the selection of cell subsets will play a prominent role in the development of hematotherapy and graft engineering. Hollow fiber systems for affinity cell separation rely on the generation of uniform fluid shear stress at the lumenal attachment interface. Potential mechanisms for nonuniformity of lumenal wall shear stress are fiber wall permeation fluxes driven by the pressure gradient along individual fibers and the influence of inlet header dynamic pressure on the radial distribution of axial flow within the fiber module. Dimensional analysis and numerical solution of the flow field within the lumen of a hollow fiber module illustrate the main physical criteria for design of hollow fiber modules. There will be a nearly uniform distribution of flow within the fiber bundle provided that the dynamic inlet pressure is small in comparison with the pressure drop along fibers. Fiber wall permeation fluxes will have a negligible effect on axial flow rate for nonporous membranes such as Cuprophan.