Separation of ethanol from ethanol/water mixtures by pervaporation with silicone rubber membranes: Effect of silicone rubbers

In this study, poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS)/poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF), poly(phenyl methyl siloxane) (PPMS)/PVDF, poly(ethoxy methyl siloxane) (PEOMS)/PVDF, and poly(trifluropropyl methyl siloxane) (PTFMS)/PVDF composite membranes were prepared. The different functional compositions of these membranes were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The surfaces and sections of these membranes were investigated by scanning electron microscopy. The hydrophobicity at the membrane surface was assessed with contact angle measurement. Swelling experiments were carried out to investigate the swelling behavior of these membranes. The composite membranes prepared in this study were used in the pervaporation separation of ethanol/water mixtures, and their separation performances were compared. The results show that the separation performances of these membranes were strongly related to the silicone rubber components and composition, the total fluxes decreased in the following order: PDMS > PPMS > PEOMS > PTFMS. The separation factor followed the following order: PPMS > PEOMS > PDMS > PTFMS (5 wt % ethanol at 40°C). In addition, the effects of the feed temperature (40–70°C) and feed composition (5–20 wt %) on the separation efficiency were investigated experimentally. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011