Antimicrobial filter cartridge

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The present invention is directed toward an antimicrobial filter cartridge which utilizes a bundle of semipermeable hollow fibers centrally located within a housing.
The housing has two chambers separated by a barrier through which the hollow fibers extend.
The hollow fibers are enclosed in one chamber and open in the other.
The chamber housing the enclosed hollow fibers also contains a microporous filter medium, such as a melt blown polymer web or a tightly wound yarn, that surrounds the hollow fibers.
This chamber also receives the fluid to be filtered.
The barrier between the two chambers forces the water through the microporous filter medium where solid contaminates are removed.
The water is also forced through the walls of the semipermeable hollow fibers which work to remove various dissolved solids from the water.
The water that enters the hollow fibers flows within the hollow fiber and through the barrier where it is then discharged into the other chamber of the housing from where it flows out of the housing and to its end use.
The various components of the antimicrobial filter, such as the hollow fibers and the microporous filter medium, may be treated with an antimicrobial agent to eliminate any microorganisms, such as bacteria, that may be filtered from the water.