Solvent Resistant Hydrolyzed Polyacrylonitrile Membranes

We have studied the solvent resistance of polyacrylonitrile membranes hydrolyzed by NaOH. The hydrolyzed polyacrylonitrile membranes provide a candidate material for either the selective layer or the supporting layer for the solvent resistant composite membrane. The origin of this solvent resistance is summarized. Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) cation-exchange NF membranes were prepared from ultrafiltration (UF) membranes through a convenient way developed recently by us. Several explanations for the difference of various solvent permeability coefficients of the cation-exchange PAN NF membrane were also suggested. Relatively high permeability was observed for the solvents with a benzene ring structure. Furthermore, products of their viscosities and permeability, mu L-P(0), are close to a constant.