Development of polyurethane/polyaniline membranes for zinc recovery through electrodialysis

In this work, cation exchange membranes were produced by mixing polyurethane (PU) and polyaniline (PAni) doped with p-toluenesulfonic acid (pTSA), and camphorsulfonic acid (CSA). The influences of the polyaniline concentration and the dopant nature on the membranes properties were investigated. Membranes were characterised by swelling and electric conductivity, as well as thermogravimetric (TGA), dynamic mechanical (DMA) and morphological (SEM) analysis. Membranes were used for the treatment of solutions containing zinc by electrodialysis. Results of zinc extraction obtained using these membranes were compared to those obtained using the commercial membrane Nafion 450.