Development of methyl cellulose and carboxymethyl cellulose composite membranes for the separation of miscible liquids by applying pervaporation technique

For the first time pervaporation separation of miscible liquids has been investigated using
three and five layered composite membranes. The materials used to construct the different membranes
consisted of natural rubber latex (NRL), hydrophilic and/ or hydrophobic polymers, placed
sequentially on top of each other. Methyl cellulose (MC) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) were
used as hydrophilic polymers to increase the water selectivity of the membrane and in contrast, ultrahigh
molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) was used to increase the organic component
selectivity in the membranes. Two different miscible liquid solutions were used, including ethanolwater
and acetonewater.
The composition of organic component in the feed was varied within the
range of 20 to 90% w/w. The measured mass and concentration of permeate in the cold trap was
related to the pervaporation flux and separation factor. Finally, the proposed mechanisms that may be
responsible for enhancing the permeation of water or organic components through the membranes
have been discussed. It has been demonstrated that the five layered hydrophilic composite membranes
containing MC leads to the best pervaporation separation performance for a feed of 90% concentrated
ethanolwater,
giving a separation factor of 51 and pervaporation separation index of 6167, as
opposed to using a blended membrane which would yield a separation factor of 1.5 and pervaporation
separation index of 309.

Citation:
Jazebizadeh, M. and Saidpour, H. (2009) ‘Development of methyl cellulose and carboxymethyl cellulose composite membranes for the separation of miscible liquids by applying pervaporation technique’ Proceedings of Advances in Computing and Technology, (AC&T) The School of Computing and Technology 4th Annual Conference, University of East London, pp.215-225.