High-gradient magnetic separation of microparticles on membrane separation unit

Abstract

A simple design of a magnetic separator based on a membrane made of a laser-perforated ferromagnetic foil has been proposed. The separator is primarily intended for analytical and research purposes. The developed magnetic separator of the proposed design has been tested in the separation of a composite aqueous suspension of magnetite nanoparticles adsorbed on hydroxyapatite microparticles. Separation efficiency has been determined via measuring the magnetic moment by the ferromagnetic resonance method; the suspension particle size has been found by dynamic light scattering before and after the separation process. It has been shown that all the particles with a diameter of more than 500 nm are retained during separation; the magnetization of the fraction decreases twofold after passing through the membrane.