Pervaporative recovery of acetone from water using mixed matrix blend membranes

•Blend membranes were prepared from polyvinyl chloride and polystyrene.•Mixed matrix blend membranes were also prepared by using nano fillers.•The organo nano particle filled membranes showed good flux and acetone selectivity.•Sorption, permeation and diffusion characteristics of the membranes were studied.

Several organophilic blend membranes were prepared by solution blending of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polystyrene (PS). Mixed matrix membranes were also prepared from PVC and PS by incorporating organophilic clay in these blends. These filled (mixed matrix) and unfilled blend membranes were characterized and used for pervaporative recovery of 5–25 wt.% acetone from water. The filled blend membrane containing 2 wt.% clay was observed to yield the best result, i.e., a flux of 0.042 kg/m2 h and acetone selectivity of 10.6 at 30 °C for 5 wt.% acetone in water. The permeability, intrinsic membrane selectivity and concentration average diffusion coefficients of the solvents were also determined.