Extraction of polyunsaturated fatty acid ethyl esters from sardine oil using Ag-containing o/w/o emulsion liquid membranes

Using silver ion as a carrier in o/w/o type emulsion liquid membranes, batch-wise extraction experiments were performed to separate polyunsaturated fatty acid ethyl esters originating in sardine oil. It was possible to separate polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) esters from the mixture of PUFA and saturated fatty acid esters. The operating conditions for stable liquid membranes were experimentally determined. A new membrane breakage model that successfully describes the membrane stability behavior is proposed.