Membrane structure control of BTDA-TDI/MDI (P84) co-polyimide asymmetric membranes by wet-phase inversion process

The formation process and morphology of BTDA-TDI/MDI co-polyimide (P84, CAS#: 58698-66-1) asymmetric flat sheet membranes have been studied. Experimental results indicated that the weight ratio of H₂O and N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP, CAS#: 872-50-4) at cloud point curve (above critical point) was a constant (7.66/92.34 (w/w)) for the P84/NMP/H₂O system. For two different casting solutions (21 wt.% P84 in pure NMP; 15 wt.% P84 in H₂O/NMP: 6.0/94.0 (w/w)), the approaching ratio α strongly dominated the formation of finger-like structure rather than the viscosity of casting solution. The formation of finger-like structure in P84 co-polyimide asymmetric membranes was due to the hydrodynamically unstable viscous fingering developed when the casting solution was displaced by a polymer-lean phase. Three types of membrane morphologies, finger-like structure, transition structure and sponge-like structure can be expected with various approaching ratio α of casting solutions. The critical approaching ratio α^* was initially defined to describe the sharp change of membrane morphology from finger-like to sponge-like structure. The casting temperature also influenced the membrane morphology. For some casting solutions (e.g. 15 wt.% P84 in H₂O/NMP: 6.4/93.6 (w/w)), the membrane morphology changed from sponge-like to finger-like structure with an increase in casting temperature. Meanwhile, the critical approaching ratio α^* also increased with an increase in casting temperature.     

Facile preparation of compact LTA molecular sieve membranes on polyethyleneimine modified substrates

A facile preparation strategy was proposed for preparation of compact zeolite LTA membranes on polyethyleneimine(PEI) modified substrates without seeding.Through the functionalization of substrates by using PEI,compact LTA membranes can be formed on various kinds of substrates.A well-intergrown and phase-pure LTA membrane with a thickness of about 3.0 μm is successfully prepared on the a-Al_2 O_3 disk after crystallization for 24 h at 60℃.Besides LTA membrane,wellintergrown zeolite FAU membranes can also be formed on PEI-modified a-Al_2 O_3 substrates,suggesting the universality of this strategy.The zeolite LTA membranes synthesized on PEI-modified a-Al_2 O_3 tubes we re evaluated fo r the separation of alcohols/water mixture through pervaporation.The as-synthesized zeolite LTA membranes display high pervaporation performances.For the separation of 10 wt% isopropanol/water solution at 90℃,a high separation factor of44991 and a water flux of 1.73 kg m ~2 h ~1 are achieved.     

Pervaporation separation of water–acetic acid mixtures through poly(vinyl alcohol)-silicone based hybrid membranes

Hybrid membranes were prepared using poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) via hydrolysis followed by condensation. The obtained membranes were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, wide-angle X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry. The remarkable decrease in degree of swelling was observed with increasing TEOS content in membranes and is attributed to the formation of hydrogen and covalent bonds in the membrane matrix. The pervaporation performance of these membranes for the separation of water–acetic acid mixtures was investigated in terms of feed concentration and the content of TEOS used as crosslinking agent. The membrane containing 1:2 mass ratio of PVA and TEOS gave the highest separation selectivity of 1116 with a flux of 3.33 × 10⁻² kg/m² h at 30 °C for 10 mass% of water in the feed. Except for membrane M-1, the observed values of water flux are close to the values of total flux in the investigated composition range, signifying that the developed membranes are highly water selective. From the temperature dependence of diffusion and permeation values, the Arrhenius apparent activation parameters have been estimated. The resulting activation energy values, obtained for water permeation being lower than those of acetic acid permeation values, suggest that the membranes have higher separation efficiency. The activation energy values calculated for total permeation and water permeation are close to each other for all the membranes except membrane M-1, signifying that coupled-transport is minimal as due to higher selective nature of membranes. Further, the activation energy values for permeation of water and diffusion of water are almost equivalent, suggesting that both diffusion and permeation contribute almost equally to the pervaporation process. The negative heat of sorption values (ΔH_s) for water in all the membranes suggests the Langmuir's mode of sorption.     

Kinetics of sorption and permeation of water in glassy polyimide

A vapor permeation experiment for water–ethanol mixtures was carried out using asymmetric Ube polyimide hollow-fiber membranes, which exhibit high selective permeability for water vapor, under the conditions of T=413 K, upstream gas pressure P_h=1.5×10⁵∼2.95×10⁵ Pa and downstream gas pressure P_l=400 Pa. To represent gas separation properties of the Ube polyimide membrane with a high transition temperature (570 K), the contribution of Henry's law part and Langmuir part modes on the diffusion through the membrane is studied on the basis of the dual-mode transport models. The results show that Henry's law penetrant controls the diffusion in the membrane. For the separation of water–ethanol mixtures by permeation through Ube polyimide membranes, the water trapped in microcavities can be assumed to be totally immobilized under the operating conditions applied here.     

Proton-conducting membranes based on poly(2,5-benzimidazole) (ABPBI) and phosphoric acid prepared by direct acid casting

We report the preparation of phosphoric acid doped poly(2,5-benzimidazole) (ABPBI) membranes for PEMFC by simultaneously doping and casting from a poly(2,5-benzimidazole)/phosphoric acid/methanesulfonic acid (MSA) solution. The evaporation of MSA yields a very homogeneous membrane having a better controlled composition, avoiding the use of solvent-intensive procedures. Membranes have been prepared with contents of up to 3.0H₃PO₄ molecules per ABPBI repeating unit. These membranes achieve a maximum conductivity of 1.5 × 10⁻² S cm⁻¹ at temperatures as high as 180 °C in dry conditions. These ABPBI membranes are more conveniently prepared than those conventionally formed and doped in separate steps while featuring comparable conductivities (ABPBI × 2.7H₃PO₄ prepared by the soaking method showed a conductivity of 2.5 × 10⁻² S cm⁻¹ at 180 °C in dry conditions).     

New approaches to improve cycle life characteristics of lithium–sulfur cells

Two different approaches were tried for an improvement of the cycle performance of Li–S cells: (1) A mixed polymer binder system of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) and polyethyleneimine (PEI) was developed to maintain the initial morphology of the carbon electrodes, the positive electrode of the Li–S cells, during charge–discharge cycles; (2) a tetrabutylammonium (TBA)-based mixed salt system was applied to an organic liquid electrolyte of the Li–S cells to change certain chemical reactions of polysulfides in the electrolyte solutions. The Li–S cells with PEI showed a significant improvement in cycle performance as well as in discharge capacity, compared with the Li–S cells using PVP only. The discharge capacity at the 50th cycle was found to be ∼580 mAh/g-sulfur, 83% of an initial capacity (∼720 mAh/g-sulfur), at a high current density of 2.0 mA cm⁻². It was observed that the Li–S cells with a mixed electrolyte of 0.5 M LiCF₃SO₃/0.5 M TBAPF₆ did not show a distinct improvement in the aspect of discharge capacity. The Li–S cells, however, showed a significant enhancement in the cycle life characteristics much better than that of Li–S cells with 1.0 M LiCF₃SO₃.     

Flame atomic absorption spectrometry determination of trace amount of gold after separation and preconcentration onto ion-exchange polyethylenimine coated on Al2O3

The object of this work is to develop a simple and selective method for efficient extraction of Au(III) ions in aqueous solution using a new solid-phase extraction sorbent. Polyethylenimine (PEI) ion-exchange polymer was coated on alumina in the presence of NaNO₃. The method is based on sorption of Au³⁺ ions on 50 mg PEI/Al₂O₃. A solution of 0.5 M thiourea, then 1.0 M HCl effectively eluted the gold ion and then aspirated into flame atomic absorption spectroscopy (FAAS). The influence of flow rate of sample solution and eluent, the pH effect, eluent type and sorption capacity was investigated. The effects of various diverse ions for preconcentration and separation of the gold ion were investigated. Relative standard deviation of 4.0 μg mL⁻¹ of gold was 1.46% (n = 10). The detection limit was 26.2 ng L⁻¹ in original solution. The method has been applied successfully for the recovery of trace amount of Au(III) ions from water samples.     

Stability and performance of porous silica–zirconia composite membranes for pervaporation of aqueous organic solutions

Porous silica–zirconia membranes were fabricated by the sol–gel techniques to study their stability against water and the pervaporation performance of aqueous solutions of organic solvents. Zirconia (10–70 mol%) was added to silica to obtain silica–zirconia composite membranes by firing at 400–500 °C for pervaporation tests with organic solvent/water mixtures, such as iso-propyl alcohol (IPA)/water and tetrahydrofuran (THF)/water mixtures at their normal boiling points.The membrane coatings have been done effectively by the hot-coating methods proposed previously. Boiling water treatments introduced in the coating processes have made the membranes quite stable even in the high water concentration region of aqueous organic solutions at their normal boiling points. Zirconia contents larger than about 40 mol% have made the silica–zirconia membranes quite stable. The membranes of zirconia contents less than about 30 mol% were found not stable in a dilute aqueous solution of IPA. The membranes fabricated by the conventional dip-coating methods with slow drying were not stable against water because of the probable segregation of silica and/or silica-rich phases during drying.The membranes fired at lower temperature (400 °C) gave a higher water flux of around 500 mol m⁻² h⁻¹ (9 kg m⁻² h⁻¹) with a separation factor larger than 1500 at 10 wt.% of water in the boiling feed of IPA/water mixture, for example.     

Polysulfone — sulfonated poly(ether ether) ketone blend membranes: systematic synthesis and characterisation

The effect of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) in membrane formation and separation properties has been investigated in polysulfone(PSU)/SPEEK/N-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP) systems. Charged ultrafiltration/nanofiltration membranes were obtained reliably in the range of 0.5–5 wt.% SPEEK in the polymer blend. All PSU/SPEEK blend membranes had substantially higher water flux, salt rejection, porosity and greatly reduced particle adhesion compared to the PSU base membrane. Further, all of these properties varied systematically with variation of SPEEK content. Reproducibility and stability of the membrane properties was excellent. Pore sizes determined from dextran retention data and AFM measurements showed reasonable agreement. Membranes with 5 wt.% SPEEK demonstrated excellent overall properties. Such membranes had very high permeability, 22.6±1.6×10⁻¹¹ m³ s⁻¹ N⁻¹, 0.999 fractional rejection of 4000 Da dextran, 0.65 rejection of 0.001 M NaCl, and only 0.75 mN m⁻¹ adhesion of a 4 μm silica particle. Such membranes are very promising for scale-up of production and testing on real process streams.     

Investigation of the isothermal (vapour + liquid) equilibria of aqueous 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol (AMP), N-benzylethanolamine,or 3-dimethylamino-1-propanol solutions at several temperatures

The vapour pressures of (2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol (AMP) + water), (N-benzylethanolamine + water), or (3-dimethylamino-1-propanol + water) binary mixtures, and of pure AMP and 3-dimethylamino-1-propanol components were measured by means of two static devices at temperatures between 283 K and 363 K. The data were correlated with the Antoine equation. From these data, excess Gibbs functions (G^E) were calculated for several constant temperatures and fitted to a fourth-order Redlich–Kister equation using the Barker’s method. The {2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol (AMP) + water} binary mixture exhibits negative deviations in G^E (at T < 353.15 K) and a sinusoidal shape for G^E for the higher temperatures over the whole composition range. For the aqueous N-benzylethanolamine solution, a S shape is observed for the G^E for all investigated temperatures over the whole composition range. The (3-dimethylamino-1-propanol + water) binary mixture exhibits negative deviations in G^E (at T < 293.15 K), positive deviations in G^E (for 293.15 K < T < 353.15 K) and a sinusoidal shape for G^E for the higher temperatures over the whole composition range.     

Preparation of PVDF porous membranes by using PVDF-g-PVP powder as an additive and their antifouling property

The hydrophilic PVDF-g-PVP powder was used as additive to prepare a series of PVDF/PVDF-g-PVP blend porous membranes via an immersion precipitation phase inversion process. FTIR-ATR measurements confirmed that the hydrophilic PVP preferentially segregated to the interface between membrane and coagulant. SEM images showed that there was no big change in the membrane cross-section with the amount of PVDF-g-PVP increased. However, the membrane surface roughness increased with the amount of PVDF-g-PVP increased according to AFM data. The mean pore size of membranes reached max when the amount of PVDF-g-PVP was 10 wt%. The water contact angle and filtration experiments revealed that the surface enrichment of PVP endowed the membranes with significantly enhanced surface hydrophilicity and protein-adsorption resistance. The flux recovery of the porous membranes was increased from 37.50% to 77.23% with the amount of PVDF-g-PVP increased from 0 to 50 wt%, also indicating that the antifouling property of the porous membranes was improved.     

Studies on polypyrrole modified nafion membrane for vanadium redox flow battery

In order to prevent the vanadium crossover and preferential water transfer in all-vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB), three methods – electrolyte soaking, oxidation polymerisation and Electrodeposition, were used to modify Nafion 117 membranes using pyrrole. The surface of the modified membranes was uniform and even, and the membranes were characterised in terms of morphology, membrane area resistance, vanadium permeability and water transfer property. The properties of all the modified membranes were improved greatly. The membranes modified by Electrodeposition showed a best combination of the membrane resistance, vanadium permeability and water transfer property, the experimental results showed that the V(IV) ion permeability of polypyrrole modified Nafion membranes by Electrodeposition at the conditions of 0.025 mA cm⁻² and 0 ^°C for 60 min reduced more than 5 times from 2.87 × 10⁻⁶ cm² min⁻¹ to 5.0 × 10⁻⁷cm² min⁻¹, and the water transfer property decreased more than 3 times from 0.72 ml/72 h cm² to 0.22 ml/72 h cm². All above properties made the modified Nafion membranes more applicative in the VRFB system. This paper also reported other methods for Nafion membrane modification and the influences of the deposition conditions on the properties of the membrane selectivity and water transfer.     

Separation of benzene/cyclohexane mixtures using polyurethane–silica hybrid membranes

Mixed sols were prepared by dissolving polyurethane (a 30 wt% solution in n-propanol, PU) and tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) in ethanol at PU:TEOS mass ratios of 1:2, 1:1, 2:1 and 3:1. Each of the sols was coated on a porous α-alumina support tube by the dipping method, and green membranes were heat-treated at 200°C for 1 h in an atmosphere of nitrogen. A PU membrane was also prepared with PU alone. The membranes were 5–6 μm thick. The polyurethane–silica membranes were swollen in benzene but only slightly in cyclohexane at room temperature. The degree of swelling in benzene decreased with increasing fractions of TEOS in the hybrid sols. The selectivity of benzene to cyclohexane was improved due to the suppression of swelling as a result of hybridization with TEOS. The total permeation flux and benzene/cyclohexane selectivity in the membrane prepared with a sol of PU:TEOS=1:1 were 3×10⁻⁵ kg m⁻² s⁻¹ and 19, respectively.     

Separation of carbon dioxide from nitrogen using ion-exchanged faujasite-type zeolite membranes formed on porous support tubes

Faujasite-type zeolite membranes were reproducibly synthesized by hydrothermal reaction on the outer surface of a porous α-alumina support tube of 30 or 200 mm in length. The membrane properties were evaluated by CO₂ separation from an equimolar mixture of CO₂ and N₂ at a permeation temperature of 40°C. CO₂ permeance and CO₂/N₂ selectivity of the NaY-type membranes were in the ranges of 0.4×10⁻⁶–2.5×10⁻⁶ mol m⁻² s⁻¹ Pa⁻¹ and 20–50, respectively. The NaY-type membranes were ion-exchanged with alkali and alkaline earth cations. The LiY-type membrane showed the highest N₂ permeance and the lowest CO₂/N₂ selectivity. The KY-type membrane gave the highest CO₂/N₂ selectivity. The NaY-type membrane was stable against exposure to air at 400°C. NaX-type zeolite membranes, formed by decreasing the ratio of SiO₂/Al₂O₃ in the starting solution, exhibited lower CO₂ permeances and higher CO₂/N₂ selectivities than those of the NaY-type zeolite membranes.     

Effect of temperature on the absorption spectra of the solvated electron in 1-propanol and 2-propanol: Pulse radiolysis and laser photolysis studies at temperatures up to supercritical condition

The absorption spectra of solvated electrons in 1-propanol and 2-propanol have been investigated from 22 to 270 °C at a fixed pressure of 7 MPa, by using both nanosecond pulse radiolysis and laser photolysis techniques. The results show that, even up to supercritical conditions, it is still possible to measure unambiguously the absorption spectra of solvated electron in these two propanols. The peak positions of the absorption spectra show a red-shift (shifts to longer wavelengths) as temperature increases, similar to water and other alcohols, but the temperature efficiency, dE_max/dT, of 1-propanol is larger than that of 2-propanol. In addition, in clear contrast to that of pulse radiolysis, in laser photolysis experiments, an increase in the maximum absorbance of the absorption spectra of solvated electron with temperature up to ∼200 °C is attributed to the increase of absorbance (CTTS absorption band) of I⁻ anion at 248 nm with increasing temperature.     

Separation performance of polyimide composite membrane prepared by dip coating process

The effects of the preparation conditions in a dip coating process on polyimide composite membranes have been investigated. Polyimide precursor obtained from pyromellitic dianhidride (PMDA) and 4,4′-oxydianiline (ODA) was mixed with triethylamine and poly(amic acid)tri-ethylamine salt (PAA salt) was made. An asymmetric polyimide membrane (PI-2080) as a supporting membrane was dipped in a PAA salt (concentration 0–5 wt.%) methanol solution. The coating layers of PAA salt were converted to these of polyimide by annealing at 200°C for 3 h in an ordinary vacuum oven.The performance of the polyimide composite membrane was evaluated by gas permeation (N₂, O₂, CO₂, at 1 kg/cm²) and pervaporation (feed: a 95 vol.% ethanol aqueous solution at 30–60°C). The composite membranes prepared using a coating solution of 5 wt.% PAA salt showed the CO₂/N₂ selectivity of over 25 on gas permeation, and separation factor α (H₂O/EtOH) of over 800 with a total flux of 0.21 kg/m² h on pervaporation.     

Water-swollen cation-exchange membranes prepared using poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/poly(styrene sulfonic acid-co-maleic acid) (PSSA-MA)

A water-swollen type of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/poly(styrene sulfonic acid-co-maleic acid) (PSSA-MA) cation-exchange membrane was prepared and characterized in terms of its electrochemical properties including ion-exchange capacity (IEC), electrical resistance, and transport number, etc. PVA/PSSA-MA membranes exhibited low electrical resistance and highly swelling property. In spite of 2–4 times higher water swelling ratio (WSR) than that of CMX (Tokuyama Corp., Japan), the transport number of the prepared membrane was comparable to that of the commercial membrane (t_n>0.93). Moreover, the electric resistance of PVA/PSSA-MA membrane was measured as low as 1.0–1.5 Ω cm². Further, in this study, interrelation between the membrane characteristics and crosslinking was investigated, and the result exhibited that the crosslinking degree is one of major factors affecting the ion transport through a water-swollen ion-exchange membrane (IEM).     

Sulfonated and crosslinked polyphosphazene-based proton-exchange membranes

Proton-exchange membranes, for possible use in H₂/O₂ and direct methanol fuel cells have been fabricated from poly[bis(3-methylphenoxy)phosphazene] by first sulfonating the base polymer with SO₃ and then solution-casting thin films. The ion-exchange capacity of the membrane was 1.4 mmol/g. Polymer crosslinking was carried out by dissolving benzophenone photoinitiator in the membrane casting solution and then exposing the resulting films after solvent evaporation to UV light. The crosslinked membranes look particularly promising for possible proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell applications. A sulfonated and crosslinked polyphosphazene membrane swelled less than Nafion 117 in both water and methanol. Proton conductivities in crosslinked and non-crosslinked 200 μm thick water-equilibrated polyphosphazene films at temperatures between 25°C and 65°C were essentially the same and only 30% lower than those for Nafion 117. Additionally, water and methanol diffusivities in the crosslinked polyphosphazene membrane were very low (≤1.2×10⁻⁷ cm²/s). Sulfonated/crosslinked polyphosphazene films showed no signs of mechanical failure (softening) up to 173°C and a pressure of 800 kPa and did not degrade chemically when soaked in a hot hydrogen peroxide/ferrous ion solution.     

Morphology and properties of hollow-fiber membrane made by PAN mixing with small amount of PVDF

In this paper, the morphological structure and properties such as, miscibility, tensile strength, flux and retention ratio of hollow-fiber membranes manufactured by PAN mixing with small amounts of PVDF have been studied. The hollow fiber was made from a spinning solution composed of polymer (PAN : PVDF=10 : 0, 9 : 1, 7 : 3), additive (PVP, PEG-600) and solvent (DMAC) when immersed in water. The spinnability of blend polymer and the influences of blending on spinning technology have been observed; the morphology of membranes were examined by SEM. The blend membranes possess much higher flux than PAN membrane and fairly good retention ratio especially for the membrane made by PAN : PVDF=9 : 1.     

Chiral separation of trans-stilbene oxide through cellulose acetate butyrate membrane

An enantioselective membrane was prepared using cellulose acetate butyrate as a membrane material. The flux and permselective properties of membrane using 50% ethanol solution of (R,S)-trans-stilbene oxide as feed solution were studied. The top surface and cross-section morphology of the resulting membrane were examined by scanning electron microscopy. The resolution of over 92% enantiomeric excess was achieved when the enantioselective membrane was prepared with 15 wt % cellulose acetate butyrate and 30 wt % N,N-dimethylformamide in the casting solution of acetone, 10 °C temperature of water bath for the gelation of the membrane, and the operating pressure and the feed concentration of the trans-stilbene oxide were 3 kgf/cm² and 5.2 mmol/L, respectively. Since the cellulose acetate butyrate contained a large amount of asymmetric carbons on the backbone structure, it was possible to form helical structure, this was considered to be the reason for the enantioselectivity of the membrane.