Palladium Extraction Using Emulsion Liquid Membrane Process – Stability Study

Abstract

Palladium is a rare precious metal with unique physical properties that are used in diverse industrial applications and in jewellery. Due to its economic value and its limited natural resources, palladium recovery from secondary resources has assumed a great significance. Therefore, this study investigated the possibility of using Emulsion Liquid Membrane (ELM) process for the extraction of palladium from simulated wastewater. The experiment was conducted using a mixer-settler in a batch system using 0.1 M Cyanex 302 in kerosene as a new carrier for palladium and 1.0 M Thiourea in 1.0 M H2SO4as a stripping agent. The effect towards membrane stability of different parameter such as surfactant concentration, emulsifying time and agitation speed has been attempted. The results show that at favourable condition of 2% w/v of span 80, 3 minutes emulsifying time, and 200 rpm agitation speed, 94% of palladium was extracted. Hence, ELM is proven to be a very promising technique for the extraction of palladium from wastewater.