Modification of ceramic membranes by silica nanoparticles with thiourea functions

Abstract

Sol-gel approach based on hydrolytic copolycondensation of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) with ethylthiocarbamidepropyl triethoxysilane (ETUS) was used to deposit functional layers with thiourea functions on the surface of macroporous ceramic alumina membrane supports. According to SEM images, such layers are composed of nanoparticles of about 60-70 nm in diameter, while IR spectroscopy data confirmed the presence of functional groups introduced during the synthesis. Such functionalization technique allows combining sorption and membrane technology and could be successfully used to remove trace quantities of copper, cadmium, and silver metal ions from aqueous solutions.