Journal of Physical Science, Vol. 29(Supp. 2), 227–242, 2018 © Penerbit Universiti Sains Malaysia, 2018. This work is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Emulsion Liquid Membrane for Cadmium Removal: Determination of Liquid Membrane Components Adhi Kusumastuti, 1* Nur Qudus, 1 Samsudin Anis 1 and Abdul Latif Ahmad 2 1 Faculty of Engineering Universitas Negeri Semarang, Kampus UNNES Sekaran, Semarang 50229, Indonesia 2 School of Chemical Engineering Universiti Sains Malaysia, Engineering Campus, 14300 Nibong Tebal, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia * Corresponding author: adhi_kusumastuti@mail.unnes.ac.id Published online: 30 July 2018 To cite this article: Kusumastuti, A. et al. (2018). Emulsion liquid membrane for cadmium removal: Determination of liquid membrane components. J. Phys. Sci., 29(Supp. 2), 227– 242, https://doi.org/10.21315/jps2018.29.s2.18 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.21315/jps2018.29.s2.18 ABSTRACT: Removal of cadmium is very important as it is one of several harmful heavy metals commonly found in textile wastewater. This study focused on determination of emulsion liquid membrane (ELM) components for cadmium removal. Carrier, diluent and stripping selection was done by contacting feed phase (150 ppm cadmium) with organic solution at ratio of 1:1. Both solutions were mixed at 500 rpm for 24 h using magnetic stirrer, then the samples were allowed to settle and separate. The results of the study showed that in comparison with acid solution, basic solution containing trioctylamine (TOA), kerosene and NH 3 as the carrier, diluent and stripping agent, respectively provided the best performance for cadmium removal using ELM. In addition, the ordering of the extraction in terms of magnitude for the diluents was highly correlated with the polarity, solubility and viscosity. Low polarity and viscosity, and high solubility of the diluent are preferred. Keywords: Emulsion liquid membrane, liquid membrane components, cadmium, extraction, ELM 1. INTRODUCTION Textile is one of the major industries in Indonesia. Textile industry plays an important role in the economy of Indonesia, growing linearly since 2010. It is the third biggest export after palm oil and rubber products. There are many sectors in