Extraction of malachite green from wastewater by using polymer inclusion membrane

•New recovery system for removal of dye (Malachite green) from wastewater.•Utilization of polymer inclusion membrane containing B2EHP as an ionic carrier.•The extraction efficiency of malachite green was approximately >99%.•PIM was successfully applied to recover malachite green in the wastewater sample.•A simple, cost effective and efficient alternative for colour removal and recovery of effluent.

An extraction of a basic dye, Malachite Green (MG) from synthetic and real wastewaters solution was carried out by using polymer inclusion membrane (PIM). The PIM consists of poly(vinyl) chloride (PVC) as base polymer, bis-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate (B2EHP) as extractant and dioctyl phthalate (DOP) as plasticizer. The composition of the components were varied to determine the optimum composition of the membrane with better extraction ability. After optimization the composition of PIM, the average extraction efficiency achieved was >98% for MG concentration of 20-80 mg L−1. The PIM was characterized by Fourier Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) methods PIM produced in this study is mechanical and chemically stable. Finally, the PIM was applied to remove MG in the wastewater samples. Results showed that average percent extraction achieved for MG were >98% and >96%, for both wastewater samples of 50 and 100 mg L−1 respectively.