Reactive separation of boron using a liquid membrane of diol in vegetable oil

Boron exists in dilute concentrations in sea water, ground water and waste waters. Reactive liquid extraction can be used for removing boron to make the treated water suitable for drinking and irrigation, with its final concentration less than 0.5 ppm. The results of equilibrium experiments are reported on the removal of boron using 2-butyl-2-ethyl-1, 3-propanediol (BEPD as a nonionic carrier) in sunflower oil, a non-traditional solvent. The results of removal of boron from aqueous solutions in the concentration range 0.5-20 ppm are presented. It is shown that this new liquid membrane system, is able to remove boron from ground waters at their natural pH of 6-8 (without any chemical addition for pH adjustments). The removal efficiency is good when the process is upgraded to a hollowfibre membrane contactor and approximately 45% boron can be removed in a single-stage contact. There are additional advantages of this new approach that includes reduced operational health and safety and environmental issues. The results reported here provide guidelines to the development of boron removal process using renewable, biodegradable, safe and cheap solvent system such as sunflower oil.