A 5,5’-Thiobis(thiazol-2-amine)-based dithiocarbamate polymer: Straightforward synthesis and application in PVC membrane modification to enhance cadmium and dye removal

A novel dithiocarbamate polymer (TTDP) derived from bis(2-aminothiazole) sulfide was synthesized through a straightforward process. The synthesis involved the initial conversion of 2-aminothiazole into its bis(sulfide), subsequent reaction with chloroacetyl chloride, and final copolymerization with disodium ethylene bisdithiocarbamate. TTDP boasts a high percentage of functional groups containing sulfur, nitrogen, and oxygen, contributing to its hydrophilicity, strong chelation capacity with metal cations, and compatibility with other polymers. Therefore, it was used as a strong candidate for making membranes in water media. According to this, TTDP was blended in ratios 1, 2, 5, and 10 wt% with polyvinyl chloride (PVC; 15 wt%), 2 wt% of polyethylene glycol 4000 in N,N-dimethylacetamide as polymeric membranes for water-based applications. The blended membranes were prepared using the casting and immersion precipitation method. The blended membrane showed high fluxes, up to 1052 L/m² h for 2 wt% of TTDP (in comparison to the bare membrane's 459 L/m²h). Notably, they demonstrated an excellent protein solution flux of 222–269 L/m² h at 3 bar with 96%–98% bovine serum albumin rejection. Furthermore, these membranes showed remarkable efficacy in removing cadmium ions (up to 98.96% for 5 and 10 wt% TTDP) and synthetic dye methyl orange (up to 84.03% for 2 wt% TTDP).