Effect of Lithium Chloride on the Fabrication of Polyvinylidene Fluoride Nanocomposite Membrane for the Separation of Oil-Water Emulsions

Abstract

Polyvinylidene fluoride membranes have been broadly applied to scientific research and industrial processes due to its excellent property and applications mainly in water treatment. In this study, the effects of lithium chloride (LiCl) on the porosity, morphology, hydrophilicity and permeability of PVDF-halloysites (PVDF-HNT) nanofiber membranes were investigated. It was observed that the incorporation of LiCl improved the electrospinnability of polymersolution and modifes the morphology of fibers from beaded fiber to a uniform fiber structure. The fabricated membrane was used for the separation of oil-water emulsions via gravitational dead end system, in which the 2% concentration of LiCl as additive, bear out the most amount of volume of water collected. As a result, the fabricated membrane offers a new material for practical applications in oil-water separations.