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Journal of Food Engineering, Vol.28, No.3, 225-238, 1996
Separation of volatile organic compounds from aqueous mixtures by pervaporation with multi-stage condensation
The extraction of volatile organic compounds (such as aroma) in aqueous mixtures is one of the applications of the pervaporation process. The selectivity of the membrane used with respect to the low concentration level of the diluted molecules limits the development of the process on an industrial scale. In order to improve the performance of pervaporation, the incorporation of the pervaporation module with multi-stage condensation is proposed. An experimental study was carried out on a pilot plant (0.1 m(2) of membrane area). The influence of the downstream operating conditions (temperature of the condenser total permeate pressure, inert gas flow) were studied on the permeate flux through organophilic membranes, made of polydimethylsiloxane, in contact with model binary mixtures (water-ethanol) and a ternary mixture (water-ethanol-ethyl acetate). The main mechanisms of distribution of the permeate in each condenser associated with transport through the membrane were identified.