Enhanced Performance of Carbon Molecular Sieve Membranes Incorporating Zeolite Nanocrystals for Air Separation

Abstract

Three different zeolite nanocrystals (SAPO-34, PS-MFI and ETS-10) were incorporated into the polymer matrix (Matrimid(R) 5218) as polymer precursors, with the aim of fabricating mixed-matrix carbon molecular sieve membranes (CMSMs). These membranes are investigated for their potential for air separation process. Based on our gas permeation results, incorporating porous materials is feasible to improve O-2 permeability, owing to the creation of additional porosities in the resulting mixed-matrix CMSMs. Owing to this, the performance of the CMSM with 30 wt% PS-MFI loading is able to surpass the upper bound limit. This study demonstrates the feasibility of zeolite nanocrystals in improving O-2/N-2 separation performance in CMSMs.