Transport Studies with Composite Membrane by Sol-Gel Method

Abstract

The preparation of polystyrene-based composite membrane at different pressures with varying amounts of material has been described. In order to understand the mechanism of transport of ions, membrane potential measurements were carried out using different concentrations of 1:1 electrolyte (KCl, NaCl, and LiCl) solutions and also to evaluate various membrane parameters such as mobility, distribution coefficient, and charge effectiveness controlling the transport phenomena. The membrane potential offered by the electrolytes is in the order of LiCl > NaCl > KCl, and the membrane is found to be cation selective. The large deviation in the value of K _± at the lower concentration of electrolytes was attributed to the high mobility of comparatively free charges of the strong electrolyte. Teorell, Meyer, and Sievers (TMS) method was used for the estimation of the thermodynamically fixed charge density of membranes. The data were then utilized to calculate membrane potential using the TMS theory. It was interesting to note that the theoretical predictions were borne out quite satisfactorily with experimental results.

Keywords:

• Composite membrane
• distribution coefficient
• fixed-charge density
• membrane potential

The authors are thankful to the Chairman, Department of Chemistry, for providing necessary research facilities.