Sustainable fabrication and pervaporation application of bio-based membranes: Combining a polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) as biopolymer and Cyrene™ as green solvent

Within the prospect to develop a more sustainable solution for the membrane fabrication sector, this work aims to investigate a new combination of bio-based materials, including a polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) as a polymer and Cyrene™ as a solvent, for the phase inversion process. The herein studied poly(hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBHV) is a microbial biopolymer with excellent biocompatible, biodegradable and solvent resistance properties; while Cyrene™ is a non-toxic, biodegradable and renewable alternative to most of the traditionally used polar aprotic solvents.