Improving the extraction performance of polymer inclusion membranes by cross-linking their polymeric backbone

Bosirul Hoque, M. Inês G.S. Almeida, Robert W. Cattrall, Thiruvancheril G. Gopakumar, Spas D. Kolev*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study aims at comprehensively investigating the possibility of fabricating cross-linked polymer inclusion membranes (PIMs) using the most common base polymers (i.e., poly(vinyl chloride), cellulose triacetate and poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)), cross-linking polymers or monomers (i.e., poly(ethylene glycol) dimethylacrylate, poly(ethylene glycol) divinylether and N-ethylmaleimide) and photo-initiators (i.e., 2,2-dimethoxy-2-phenyl acetophenone, triarylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate and triphenylphosphine oxide). The suitability of the photo-initiators for the different cross-linking polymers/monomers in poly(vinyl chloride)-based membranes (without extractants) was assessed for the first time, which was followed by optimizing the cross-linking conditions (i.e., membrane composition and duration of UV-irradiation) for all three base polymers studied. The optimum concentrations of photo-initiator and UV-treatment times were different for the different base polymers used, thus highlighting the importance of this study. Aliquat 336 and di-(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid, as the most frequently used PIM extractants, were added to the compositions of the homogeneous cross-linked membranes produced under optimal conditions and the extraction performance of the newly developed cross-linked PIMs was compared with that of their non-cross-linked counterparts in the extraction of SCN and Zn2+, respectively. The results showed that all but one of the 13 homogeneous cross-linked PIMs obtained in this study could extract up to 45% more of the corresponding target species than their non-cross-linked counterparts and the remaining one performed similarly to the relevant non-cross-linked PIM. The initial fluxes for the cross-linked PIMs were up to 10 times higher than those of the relevant non-cross-linked membranes and in two cases the fluxes were similar in value. These results demonstrate the potential of cross-linking for enhancing the extraction performance of PIMs.

Original languageEnglish
Article number104813
JournalReactive and Functional Polymers
Volume160
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2021
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Elsevier B.V.

Keywords

  • Cross-linking
  • Extraction
  • Polymer inclusion membrane (PIM)
  • Thiocyanate
  • Zinc

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemistry
  • Environmental Chemistry
  • Biochemistry
  • General Chemical Engineering
  • Polymers and Plastics
  • Materials Chemistry

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