Iron(III) removal from aqueous solution using MCM-41 ceramic composite membrane

Mesoporous MCM-41 was deposited on an inexpensive disk shaped ceramic support through hydrothermal technique for ultrafiltration of Fe³⁺ from aqueous solution. The ceramic support was fabricated using uni-axial compaction technique followed by sintering at 950°C. The characteristics of MCM-41 powder as well as the composite membrane were examined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), porosity and pure water permeation test. The XRD result revealed the good crystallinity and well-resolved hexagonally arranged pore geometry of MCM-41. TGA profile of synthesized MCM-41 zeolite displayed the three different stepwise mechanisms for the removal of organic template. The formation of MCM-41 on the porous support was verified by FESEM analysis. The characterization results clearly indicated that the accumulation of MCM-41 by repeated coating on the ceramic disk directs to reduce the porosity and pore size from 47% to 23% and 1.0 to 0.173 <i>μ</i>m, respectively. Moreover, the potential of the fabricated MCM-41 membrane was investigated by ultrafiltration of Fe³⁺ from aqueous stream at various influencing parameters such as applied pressure, initial feed concentration and pH of solution. The maximum rejection 85% was obtained at applied pressure of 276 kPa and the initial feed concentration of 250 ppm at pH 2.