Separation of sodium formate and pentaerythritol by electrodialysis

The electrodialysis (ED) process using ion-exchange membranes is mainly use d for the desalination of brackish water and wheys and for the concentratio n of seawater. ED has of late become a unique operation for the separation of chemicals from a mixture of ionic and nonionic substances. During the ma nufacture of pentaerythritol, sodium formate is also formed, which is to be separated from the mixture. Since ED is used to separate electrolytes from nonelectrolytes, attempts were made to make use of this process for the se paration of sodium formate and pentaerythritol from their mixture. In this paper we have discussed the experimental results obtained their separation under different experimental conditions.