Characterization of polymer inclusion membranes (PIMs) containing Bis-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate carrier for zinc (II) ions removal

Abstract

Transportation using polymer inclusion membranes (PIMs) is one of the selective and effective methods that can be used for heavy metal ion removal. This study was performed to investigate the characteristics of fabricated PIMs by varying composition of liquid extracting agent, bis-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate (B2EHP) carrier to amplify the zinc (II) ions removal from aqueous solution. The fabricated PIMs were characterized with respect to their surface morphology, surface chemistry, hydrophilicity and ion exchange capacity (IEC) using Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and goniometer, respectively. The performance of the fabricated PIMs was evaluated based on the Zn (II) ions removal efficiency at different composition of B2EHP carrier content. The experimental results show that the R5 membrane, which contains 30 percent carrier, had the highest IEC value of 0.746 mq/g with a contact angle of 50.4o, and thus had an outstanding removal efficiency of zinc (II) ion, which was greater than 99 percent. This study demonstrated that the B2EHP carrier improved the microstructure of the produced PIMs and served as an excellent ion carrier for the removal of Zn (II) ions.