Abstract:
This paper describes the desalination process by membrane distillation (MD) using track-etched
membranes (TeMs). Hydrophobic track-etched membranes based on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET
TeMs) with pore diameters from 700 to 1300 nm were prepared by UV-initiated graft polymerization of
lauryl methacrylate (LMA) inside the nanochannels. Modified PET TeMs were investigated by Fourier
transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy
(SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and contact wetting angle (CA) measurements. Hydrophobic
PET TeMs were tested for treating saline solutions of different concentrations by the direct contact
membrane distillation (DCMD) method. The influence of membrane pore diameter and salt solution
concentration on the water flux and rejection degree were investigated. Membranes with CA 94 ± 4°
were tested in the direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) of 7.5–30 g L−1 saline solution.
Hydrophobic membranes with large pore sizes showed water fluxes in the range of 1.88 to 11.70 kg m−2
h−1 with salt rejection values of up to 91.4%.
