DEVELOPMENT OF MEMBRANE AND COLD-CONDENSATION PROCESS FOR REMOVAL AND RECOVERY OF VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS

Volatile organic compounds (VOC) cause air pollution problem and deterioration of atmosphere of petrochemical and fine chemical plants. Hybrid process of membrane and cold-condensation were developed and it effectively removed and recycled the VOC. Operation parameters of the process were optimized to attain hish removal and recycle of VOC. Composite membranes for organic vapor separation were developed in this work by PDMS coating and plasma polymerization on polypropylene and polysulfone support membranes. PDMS and various silicone monomers were tested for several organic vapors such as benzene, toluene, TCE, and HCFC, which are produced in petrochemical and fine chemical industry and causes air pollution problems if are released to atmosphere. Composite membranes prepared in this work showed appreciable performance in terms of organic vapor removal and reuse. Performance variation of the membranes was correlated with their surface characteristics.