Solvents are very critical not only to produce lifesaving drugs, but also to manufacture many household products. Hence, they are widely used in the pharmaceutical industry, petroleum refineries, paints and coatings, adhesives, printing inks, industrial cleaning and research essential to the fields of medicine and disease diagnosis. Conventional technologies such as distillation which are used to recover those solvents, are energy-intensive, inefficient and suffer from high operating and maintenance costs. Pervaporation based membrane separation overcomes these challenges and in conjunction with the utilization of inorganic membranes derived from non-toxic, sufficiently abundant and hence expendable, silica, allows for high operating temperatures and enhanced chemical and structural integrity, raw material abundance and easy disposability. However, silica membranes possess some disadvantages, such as an inadequacy in the complete understanding of the governing mechanism as well as compromised structural integrity towards dilute aqueous organic mixtures.  Membrane-based separation is predicted to dominate the industry in the coming decades, as the process is being understood at a deeper level, leading to the fabrication of tailored membranes for niche applications. The current review aims to compile and present the extensive and often dispersive scientific investigations to the reader and highlight the current scenario as well as the limitations suffered by this mature field. In addition, viable alternative to the conventional methodologies, as well as other rival materials in existence to achieve membrane-based pervaporation are highlighted.

Solvents are very critical not only to produce lifesaving drugs, but also to manufacture many household products. Hence, they are widely used in the pharmaceutical industry, petroleum refineries, paints and coatings, adhesives, printing inks, industrial cleaning and research essential to the fields of medicine and disease diagnosis. Conventional technologies such as distillation which are used to recover those solvents, are energy-intensive, inefficient and suffer from high operating and maintenance costs. Pervaporation based membrane separation overcomes these challenges and in conjunction with the utilization of inorganic membranes derived from non-toxic, sufficiently abundant and hence expendable, silica, allows for high operating temperatures and enhanced chemical and structural integrity, raw material abundance and easy disposability.

However, silica membranes possess some disadvantages, such as an inadequacy in the complete understanding of the governing mechanism as well as compromised structural integrity towards dilute aqueous organic mixtures.

 Membrane-based separation is predicted to dominate the industry in the coming decades, as the process is being understood at a deeper level, leading to the fabrication of tailored membranes for niche applications. The current review aims to compile and present the extensive and often dispersive scientific investigations to the reader and highlight the current scenario as well as the limitations suffered by this mature field.        In addition, viable alternative to the conventional methodologies, as well as other rival materials in existence to achieve membrane-based pervaporation are highlighted.