Naturally available SA was used to prepare blend
membranes by adding different amount of Soya protein
(10, 30, 40 and 50 wt %). Membranes were crosslinked
with a glutaraldehyde / Hydrochloric acid mixture, which
acted as a unique compound to impart good strength and
membrane performance to water in terms of flux and
selectivity. Blend compatibility was confirmed by DSC,
whereas membrane crosslinking was confirmed by FTIR.
Pervaporation dehydration of the membranes was tested for
water + isopropanol mixture at 300C. The blend membranes
of SA/SPI containing 50 wt % SPI showed higher
permeation flux for the water + isopropanol, whereas
higher selectivity up to 891 was observed for the blend
membrane containing similar wt % ratio from the aqueous
streams.