A liquid membrane technique proved to be a possible method for the recovery process of compactin (ML-236B), a highly effective pharmaceutical compound for the treatment of hyperlipidemia, from its dilute aqueous solution. The kinetics and the mechanism for the transport process were discussed, and the effects of the operating parameters on the liquid membrane permeation could be quantitatively demonstrated. The distribution equilibrium of compactin was measured between the aqueous and the oil phases, in which toluene and mesitylene (1,3,5-trimethylbenzene) containing di-n-octylamine, a complexing agent, were used as the oil phase. The dissociation constant, the distribution coefficients and the reaction equilibrium constants were determined experimentally. A simple transport model was proposed that compactin molecules should permeate through two pathways: the physical diffusional permeation and the ion-pair complex permeation. Supported liquid membrane (SLM) experiments were conducted by adjusting pH values in the aqueous phases and the carrier concentration, and the individual mass transfer coefficients of the species were evaluated according to the proposed model. The overall mass transfer resistance was expressed as the sum of the local resistances in feed, membrane and stripping phases. With the increase of the carrier concentration, the resistance in the membrane phase became less important and the overall transfer rate was controlled by the diffusion in the aqueous layer, implying that an excessive carrier would be no longer effective. The work performed provides us the suggestion for setting the reasonable carrier concentration for the liquid membrane system concerned.