Use of Ceramic Membrane for Indigo Separation in Effluent from Textile Industry

The production of fabrics is one important sectors of the national economy, especially in jeans production. During dyeing step, in the production of jeans, it is generate a large amount of wastewater rich in indigo, a strong blue dye that when released directly into the environment is responsible for several environmental impacts. The aim of this work is to study the use of microfiltration ceramic membranes for indigo separation in effluents from textile industry. Initially the ceramic membranes were characterized in relation to the pore size and tangential flux. It was produced an indigo solution whose concentration and composition similar to the effluent of textile industry. The solution was characterized and submitted to a filtration through ceramic membranes by tangential flow, by applying a pressure of 3 Bar. At the end it was verified that 99% of the indigo was retained.