Polymeric Pervaporation Membranes: Organic-Organic Separation

Pervaporation (PV) is a very valuable membrane separation technique generally applied thanks to its low-energy need, low-cost separation and high quality product yield. It represents one of the most interesting membrane processes generally employed for the purification of chemicals and for the separation of organicorganic mixtures. This type of separation has been widely investigated due to its relevance in the chemical and petrochemical industry and it is expected to grow in the next years thanks to the innovation brought in membrane materials. This chapter opens with a general overview on PV and a brief description of its history. Then, the main requirements of polymeric membranes, in terms of hydrophobic- hydrophilic nature, crosslinking, swelling degree and thickness of selective layer are described with particular reference to organic-organic separations. Finally, three different case studies on the application of PV in some of the most important organic-organic separations are reported and discussed.