Nanofiltration performance in the removal of dye from binary mixtures containing anthraquinone dyes

Abstract

Textile industries produce a large quantity of wastewater containing different dyes which can impose a significant risk to environment. In this study, the performance of a commercial polyamide nanofilter membrane for the removal of binary mixture of dyes of reactive (ionic) and disperse (non-ionic) dyes was investigated. The synergic effects of both dyes on the removal performance of the membranes were also studied. The experiments were performed at different dye concentrations of 60, 120, and 180 mg/l for each dye, pH of 6, 8, and 10, and for constant feed pressure of 800 kPa. Results showed that increasing pH from 6 to 10 and also disperse concentration from 60 to 180 mg/l enhanced the removal efficiency of both dyes about 10%. Whereas, by increasing the reactive dye concentration, disperse removal efficiency decreased by 3%. Response surface methodology was also used to optimize the effect of experimental parameters on the dye removal percentage.

Keywords:

• Reactive blue
• Disperse blue
• Color removal
• Nanofiltration
• Textile wastewater
• RSM

Acknowledgments

The authors of this work would like to gratefully acknowledge the Golnesar Woolen Co. (Isfahan, Iran) for the financial supports and the Environmental Research Institute (ERJ, University of Isfahan) which helped in the work.