CONTINUOUS ELECTROCHEMICALLY MODULATED COMPLEXATION SEPARATIONS PROCESS

A continuous electrochemically modulated complexation (EMC) process was devised to extract and concentrate a class of heterocyclic nitrogen compounds. This design is composed of flow-through electrolysis cells for redox modulation and cycling of the complexing agent and hollow-fiber membrane modules for phase contacting. The extent of both extraction and concentration was found to depend mainly on the magnitude of the distribution coefficients for both steps. Experimental results and modeling of this continuous EMC process are reported, as well as potential applications for this process for other separations.