Extraction of acid orange 7 from water by emulsion liquid membrane using Tri-dodecyl-amine as extractant

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to investigate the feasibility of extracting Acid Orange 7 (AO7), a complex reactive dye, from aqueous solutions using a stabilized emulsion liquid membrane (ELM) technique. The ELM formulation comprised tri-dodecylamine (TDA) as the extracting agent, kerosene as the diluting medium, and SPAN 80 as the surfactant. We systematically examined various experimental variables that affect the extraction of AO7. These variables included the concentrations of the extractant and surfactant, internal phase concentrations, the ratio of the membrane phase to the internal phase, the choice of diluting medium and its grade, stirring speed, treatment ratio, and the initial concentration of AO7. Furthermore, we investigated the impact of sodium chloride concentration in the external phase. Our research findings indicate that the optimal conditions for AO7 extraction using the ELM method were as follows: a TDA concentration of 3% (w/w), a SPAN 80 concentration of 9% (w/w), an oil-to-aqueous phase ratio (O/A) of 1:1, kerosene as the diluting medium, H2SO4 as the internal phase, a stirring speed of 200 rpm, a treatment ratio of 1:10, and an initial AO7 concentration of 10 mg/L. Under these precise conditions, an exceptional extraction efficiency of 98.49% was achieved in just 15 min. Under these carefully controlled conditions, an exceptional extraction efficiency of 98.49% was achieved in just 15 min. Consequently, the emulsified liquid membrane extraction process demonstrates significant potential as an advanced separation technique for removing hazardous dyes, particularly in dilute solutions.