The effect of mass transfer resistance and nonuniform initial solvent concentration on permeation through polymer membranes

Abstract

A numerical simulation model has been developed which enables one to examine the effects of surface mass transfer resistance on the evaluation of permeation (P*), diffusion (D), and solubility (S) coefficients from unsteady-state mass transfer experiments as well as the transmission rate. A complementary analytical expression has been developed which validates the numerical model and facilitates the evaluation of the concentration dependence of P*, D, and S from sequential step-change experiments, under experimental conditions when the surface mass transfer resistance can be neglected.