Experimental Study of Batch Electrodialysis Process in Separation of Sodium Sulfate from Magnesium Stearate Aqueous Slurry

Magnesium stearate (MgSt) is a widely used powder lubricant in the pharmaceutical industry whose mixing dynamics remain poorly understood. MgSt is the preferred lubricant in the pharmaceutical industry because of its low cost and high lubrication potential, melting point, and chemical stability. It is insoluble in water due to its highly apolar molecular structure .In a designed research, batch electrodialysis process were used to remove existing sodium sulphate, an impurity in MgSt aqueous slurry solution.A three compartments experimental electrodialysis system were designed and implemented to increase purification of MgSt. Electrodialysis is a technique based in the transport of ions through selective membranes under the influence of an electrical field. This technique has proved its feasibility and high performance in the separation and desalination of brackish water. In this paper influence of effective parameters such as applied voltage, feed concentration, time and stirrer speed on removal of sodium sulphate are represented. Based on gained results the amount of salt in MgSt aqueous solution was noticeably reduced.