Application of Waste Polymers as a Raw Material for Ultrafiltration Membrane Preparation

Abstract

Currently, polymer membranes are widely used in water treatment processes. The polymers commonly used for their production are polysulphone, polyacrylonitrile, or polyethersulphone. However, there are many other raw materials from which membranes can be prepared. In this work, polystyrene membranes were obtained by dissolving Styrofoam in dimethyleformamide. The surface properties of the obtained membranes differed slightly from those obtained for polymer membranes prepared from typical granulates. Retention testing in ultrafiltration conditions showed that membranes made form waste polystyrene have similar parameters to membranes made from pure polymers.