Preparation of Polyvinyl Chloride/ZnO Composite Ultrafiltration Membrane for Peat Water Treatment

Abstract

Abstract In this research, composite polyvinyl chloride ultrafiltration (PVC-UF) membrane was used for peat water treatment. The UF membrane was prepared by mixing polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene glycol (PEG400), ZnO, acetone, and N-dimethylacetamide (DMAC). The concentration of PVC was varied from 10 to 14 wt.%, while the PEG400 was varied from 0 to 15 wt.%. The concentration of acetone and ZnO was fixed at four (4) wt.% and two (2) wt.%, respectively. Immersion precipitation method was used to form the membrane structure. The experimental results showed that higher humic substance rejection (>50%) was achieved when 12 wt.% PVC and 10% wt.% PEG was added into the polymer solution. The permeate flux of the membrane was above 100 L/m−2h−1.Higher rejection of humic substances was obtained at an operating pressure of 30 psig.