The fabrication and characterization of sintered diatomite for potential microfiltration applications

Porous ceramic membranes have lately become a subject of special interest due to their outstanding thermal and chemical stability. We investigated whether a sintered diatomite support layer could also serve as a separation layer to minimize any processing difficulties, and investigated whether the support layer and the separation layer could be made from the same material to avoid a thermal mismatch during a high-temperature sintering process. We prepared sintered diatomite as a porous ceramic membrane for microfiltration, as diatomite particles are inherently porous and irregular. The pore characteristics of the sintered diatomite specimens were studied by scanning electron micrography, mercury porosimetry, and capillary flow porosimetry.