Module I

Membrane Materials
Selection of Membrane Material
The choice of a membrane material is based on specific physical and chemical
properties.

 Materials should be tailored in an advanced way to separate particular mixtures

 long-term and stable use are required to be applied in a membrane application

 Properties of membranes depend upon:

• the material (permeability, separation factors),
• the membrane structure and thickness (permeance),
• the membrane configuration (e.g., flat, hollow fiber) and
• the module and system design
Significance of Materials for High Performance
Membrane
• The properties of a membrane are controlled by the membrane material and
the membrane structure.

• To be useful in an industrial separation process, a membrane must exhibit

at least the following characteristics.
 high flux.
 high selectivity (rejection).
 mechanical stability.
 tolerance to all feed stream components (fouling resistance).
 tolerance to temperature variations.
 manufacturing reproducibility.
 low manufacturing cost.
 ability to be packaged into high surface area modules.
Preference of Materials for Membrane
• Despite the large number of polymeric materials investigated and developed
for all Membrane process, the number of polymers used in commercial
system is still limited and these can be divide in hydrophobic and hydrophilic
form,
Membrane material

Organic polymers Inorganics

• Polysulfone (PS) • -alumina

• Polyethersulfone (PES) • -alumina
• Cellulose acetate (CA) • Borosilicate glass
• Regenerated cellulose • Pyrolyzed carbon
• Polyamides (PA) • Zirconia/stainless steel
• Polyvinylidedefluoride (PVDF)• Zirconia carbon
• Polyacrylonitrile (PAN)
Organic vs. inorganic membrane
Advantages for organics
• They are inexpensive
• They were developed before inorganic membranes
• They are light
• They are flexible and can easily be cast or moulded into various
shapes and sizes
• Certain membrane types (e.g. hollow fibres) can only be prepared
with organic polymers
• A wide range of membrane chemistry is available

Advantages for Inorganics

• They can withstand higher transmembrane pressure
• They are generally more durable (although ceramic and glass
membranes can be quite brittle and hence susceptible to breakage)
• They are generally resistant to a wider variety of chemical
substances e.g. acids, alkali and solvents
• They can easily be cleaned and sterilised
Commercial Available Hydrophilic &
Hydrophobic Polymers
Hydrophilic Polymers
Poly(viny1 alcohol) PVAL Cellulose and its derivative
Poly(viny1 chloride) PVC Cellulose acetate CA
Polyamide PA Cellulose acetate butyrate CAB
Poly(acry1ic acid) PAA Cellulose acetate propionate CAP
Poly(ethy1ene oxide) PEOX Cellulose nitrate CN
Polyacrylonitrile PAN Cellulose propionate CP
Poly(viny1 acetate) PVAC Ethyl cellulose EC
Poly(viny1 butyral) PVB Carboxymethyl cellulose CMC
Poly (p-hydroxystyrene) PHS
Hydrophobic Polymers
Polysulfone PSf Poly tetrafluoro ethylene PTFE
Polyethersulfone PES Silicone
Poly (vinylidene fluoride) PVDF Polyphenylene oxide PPO
Polycarbonate PC Polyphenylene sulfide PPS
Polypropylene PP Polystyrene PS
Polyethylene PE Polydimethylsiloxane PDMS
poly(methyl methacrylate) PMMA
Selected Homo polymers Investigated for
Integrally-skinned Membranes
Selected Homo polymers Investigated for
Integrally-skinned Membranes
Selected Homo polymers Investigated for
Integrally-skinned Membranes
Selected Homo polymers Investigated for
Integrally-skinned Membranes
Selected Homo polymers Investigated for
Integrally-skinned Membranes
Selected Homo polymers Investigated for
Integrally-skinned Membranes
Structure of common polymers used in membranes
Structure of common polymers used in membranes
 Materials for Industrially Established Membranes
Polymer Morphology Membrane
Barrier type Cross-section Thickness (μm) process
Cellulose acetates (CA) Nonporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 GS, RO
Mesoporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 UF
Microporous Isotropic 50–300 MF
Cellulose nitrate (CN) Macroporous Isotropic 100–500 MF
Cellulose, regenerated (CR) Mesoporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 UF, D
Perfluorosulfonic acid polymer (PFSA) Nonporous Isotropic 50–500 ED, fuel cell
Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) Mesoporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 UF
Polyetherimides (PEI) Mesoporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 UF
Polyethersulfones (PES) Mesoporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 UF
Macroporous Isotropic 100–500 MF
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) Macroporous Isotropic track-etched 6–35 MF
Polyphenylene oxide Nonporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 GS
Poly(styrene-co-divinylbenzene), sulfonated or aminated Nonporous Isotropic 100–500 ED
Polytetrafluoroethylene , Teflon (PTFE) Macroporous Isotropic 50–500 MF
Nonporous ∼0.1 GS
Polyamide, aliphatic (PA) Macroporous Isotropic 100–500 MF
Polyamide, aromatic Mesoporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 UF
Polyamide, aromatic, in situ synthesized Nonporous Anisotropic/composite ∼0.05 RO, NF
Polycarbonates, aromatic (PC) Nonporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 GS
Macroporous Isotropic track-etched 6–35 MF
Polyether, aliphatic crosslinked, in situ synthesized Nonporous Anisotropic/composite ∼0.05 RO, NF
Polyethylene (PE) Macroporous Isotropic 50–500 MF
Polyimides (PI) Nonporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 GS, NF
Polypropylene (PP) Macroporous Isotropic 50–500 MF
Polysiloxanes (PDMS) Nonporous Anisotropic/composite ∼0.1<1–10 GS PV, NF (organophilic)
Polysulfones (PSf) Nonporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 GS
Mesoporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 UF, Dialysis
Polyvinyl alcohol, crosslinked (PVC) Nonporous Anisotropic/composite <1–10 PV (hydrophilic)
Polyvinylidenefluoride (PVDF) Mesoporous Anisotropic ∼0.1 UF

Iqbal, UMP © Macroporous Isotropic 50–300 MF

 Rule of Additive As Membrane Materials

• The combination of polymeric additives used in membrane making industries

is vast.

• Although much research have been carried out on the effect of composition of
polymer on membrane properties.

• The role of these additives i-e, is to create a spongy membrane structure by

prevention of macrovoid formation, enhance pore formation, improve pore
interconnectivity and/or introduce hydrophylicity.