Pervaporation separation of ethylacetate-water mixtures through a crosslinked poly(vinylalcohol) membrane

Abstract

The pervaporation separation of ethyl acetate-water mixtures was carried Out using poly(vinyl alcohol) membranes prepared by crosslinking with tartaric acid. Pervaporation experiments were conducted for 1-2.5 wt% water containing ethylacetate-water binary mixtures at 30 degrees C, 40 degrees C and 50 degrees C. It is observed that permeation rates increased and selectivity decreased with increasing content of water in the feed. As a result of variations in fluxes, with an increase in temperature, the selectivity increased for the 2 and 2.5 wt% water containing mixture, but decreased for the 1 wt% water content. However, the selectivity of the 1.5 wt% water containing mixture decreased slightly. The ethylacetate and water fluxes showed almost the same trend with both temperature and water concentration changes in the feed. Meanwhile, the variation amount between fluxes of ethylacetate at 40 degrees C and 50 degrees C was evidently less than those of fluxes at 30 degrees C and 40 degrees C. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.