Investigation of electrospun and film‐cast PVC membranes incorporated with aliquat 336 for efficient Cd extraction: A comparative study

Abstract

Abstract This article was aimed to investigate the cadmium extraction behaviors of the two different polyvinyl chloride membranes incorporating Aliquat 336—electrospinning and film‐casting. An optimal investigation condition for membranes used in the extraction process was produced at 25 kV with 10 cm tip‐to‐collector distance. Membranes were electrospun for 8 h at 200 μL/h. Membrane extraction studies were carried out using a 127 mg/L Cd(II) solution. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images revealed differences in fiber diameters and membrane morphology. The addition of Aliquat produced very fine fibers (7–722 nm) resulting Brunauer‐Emmett‐Teller (BET) surface areas of 4.67–11.3 m 2 /g for electrospun membranes and 1.70–5.44 m 2 /g for film‐casted membranes. Extraction studies using membranes with different levels of Aliquat (0–40% w/w) revealed that the cadmium extraction performance of electrospun membranes was significantly better than conventional film‐cast membranes. For 40% Aliquat 336, with an initial concentration of 127 mg/L Cd, the cast membrane extracted down to concentration to 115 mg/L as compared to electrospun membrane, which extracted down to 88 mg/L within 40 h. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011