Removal of Thiophene from Binary Mixtures Using Polyether Block Amide (PEBAX) Film by Pervaporation

Reduction of organosulfurs in gasoline has become an urgent requirement in the world, especially in China. The goal of this work focuses on removal of thiophene from binary mixtures of thiophene and n-heptane by means of pervaporation. The PEBAX homogenous film was prepared by coating. The swelling experiments of film were studied for the affinity of PEBAX film to thiophene. The swelling degree of film increased with increasing thiophene content in the mixtures. The result indicates the PEBAX film had preferential sorption to thiophene rather than n-heptane. Pervaporation experiments were studied for investigating separation properties of the film. The effect of thiophene concentration in feed and operation temperature on separation properties of the film was researched. The results of pervaporation showed that both total and thiophene flux increased with increase of thiophene content in the feed and temperature, but the separation factor deceased with their increase. The activity energy was calculated according to the Arrhenius relationship. This work may offer useful visions into the possibility of the separation of sulfur compounds from gasoline via pervaporation.