Enhancing anionic dye removal from aqueous solutions using kaolin-based membranes coated with sol-gel salt chloride film

In this research, a clay product called Kaolin KT2 from Tamazert was utilized to create porous ceramic membrane supports for treating polluted water. The membrane supports underwent various investigations. They were made using the casting method in plaster molds and then enhanced with a thin functional layer through the sol-gel method to reduce the pore size to around 0.2 μm. The gel synthesis method was inspired by the Pechini method, which involves replacing expensive polymer precursors with more cost-effective metal salts. The ceramic membranes were tested for removing Indigo Carmine Anionic Dye (ICAD) under a filtration pressure of 3 bar for a three-hour cycle. The results showed that the membrane exhibited a high rejection rate of 90% for the anionic dye after the deposition of a thin film. The ceramic membrane was characterized using various techniques including ATD-ATG, XRD, XRF, FTIR, AAN, and SEM imaging. These characterization methods provided detailed insights into the microstructure, chemical composition, and demonstrated excellent mechanical strength and chemical stability, thus rendering it suitable for industrial use.