Novel nanocomposite membranes of sodium alginate filled with polyaniline-coated titanium dioxide for dehydration of 1,4-dioxane/water mixtures

Novel sodium alginate filled with polyaniline coated titanium dioxide [NaAlg–PANI (TiO2)] nanocomposite membranes were prepared by incorporating nanosized titanium dioxide modified with polyaniline into NaAlg matrix and crosslinked with glutaraldehyde. The developed membranes were assessed for intermolecular interactions using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) to understand their interaction properties. Further, X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies were also performed to evaluate the morphology of the NaAlg mixed matrix membrane. The % degree swelling (DS) was calculated for all membranes in 1,4-dioxane/water mixtures at 30°C to know the correlation between pervaporation (PV) results and DS. The membranes were tested for suitability to dehydrate 1,4-dioxane by PV has been demonstrated. The effect of feed composition as well as amount of filler loading on PV separation performance of these membranes were evaluated in terms of flux and selectivity.