Extraction of methylene orange and humic acid from aqueous solutions by using polymer inclusion membrane

Dyes and organic matters which are highly toxic to marine life and form a large part of industrial waste are commonly used colorants in textile and other related industries. Extractions of methylene orange dye and humic acid organic matter solution were investigated by using polymer inclusion membrane (PIM). PIM was made of poly (vinyl chloride) (PVC) and cellulose triacetate (CTA) as base polymer, trioctylamine (TOA) as a carrier, and methyltrioctyl ammonium chloride (Aliquat 336) as a plasticizer. The composition of the components was changed to determine the optimum composition of the membrane with better extraction ability. 10 ppm methylene orange and 100 ppm humic acid solution were passed through the produced membranes. Synthetic solutions prepared in the feed phase and HCl in the receiving phase were added in the system and the experiment continued until the system came to equilibrium. The PIM-6 membrane containing 40 wt% PVC, 40 wt% A336, and 20 wt% TOA had the highest removal efficiency of dye (93.57 %) and the highest organic matter removal efficiency (86.03 %). When the performance of PIM was examined, it was observed that it was an excellent method for the removal of dyes and organic substances from industrial wastewater.