Using non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS), asymmetric porous membranes were prepared from polycarbonate
(PC) derived from waste compact discs (CDs). The effects of recovered PC (PC-R) concentration (18-24 wt%) on the morphologies
and mechanical and permeation properties were investigated. At all casting solution concentrations, PC-R membranes had
asymmetric structures that consisted of a skin layer and a marcovoid sublayer. As the PC-R concentration increased, the
macrovoid sublayer was suppressed as a sponge-like sublayer formed within the asymmetric structure. The tensile strength and
elongation at break of membranes cast from solutions containing 20, 22, and 24 wt% PC-R ranged from 2.60 to 2.97 MPa and
7.69 to 11.45%, respectively. These values were sufficient to resist operating pressures during membrane filtration testing. The
pure water flux through the membranes decreased as the PC-R concentration increased, whereas %R presented an inverse trend.
These results indicated that PC recovered from waste compact discs could provide an alternative material for porous membrane
fabrication.