The Effect of Variations in the Ratio of Matrix/Solvent on the Physical and Mechanical Properties of Chitosan Biopolymer Membranes

The membranes with various ratio of matrix/solvent such as 1%, 2%, 3%, and 4% were prepared using casting method. Chitosan powder was used as a matrix and acetic acid 1% (v/v) solution as solvent. The physical properties of membranes have been characterized by different techniques including FTIR, XRD, swelling index (SI), BJH method, and filtration, while the mechanical properties have been characterized by tensile strength measurements. The results showed that increasing the amount of matrix resulted in an increased in thicknesses, pores size, the elongation-at-break, elastic moduli, tensile strength and the pure water flux of membranes significantly, whereas the pores density, swelling index and crystallinity index decreased. This study can be simplified to be even faster and straightforward in designing polymer membrane structures for filtration purposes.