Desulfurization of Ships Fuel with Nanocomposite Membrane Based on Metal-Organic Framework (Uio66-NH2) by Membrane Pervaporation Method

The presence of sulfur compounds in the fuel of offshore ships causes much pollution in the air and aquatic environment of the Fleas and oceans. To eliminate these hazardous compounds, the membrane pervaporation method has been used to desulfurize the fuel (gasoline). Thiophene was used as a sulfur agent and n-heptane as a representative of hydrocarbon compounds in gasoline. Hybrid membranes were fabricated with an active layer composed of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and metal-organic framework NH2-UiO-66, together with support layers of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectrum (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to characterize nanoparticles and synthesized membranes. The effect of NH2-UiO-66 incorporation on the pervaporation performance of the hybrid membranes was evaluated. The optimal performance was achieved when the weight fraction of NH2-UiO-66 to PDMS was 8% with the flux of 10.13 kg.m2.h1 and an enrichment factor of 4.1 (increased by 87.5% and 26.2% respectively compared with the PDMS control membrane).