Issue 1, 2017

On the molecular mechanisms for the H2/CO2 separation performance of zeolite imidazolate framework two-layered membranes

Abstract

Double-layered zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF) membranes were fabricated inside polyimide P84 hollow fibers by a step-synthesis conducted by microfluidic technology and applied to pre-combustion gas separation. Our hypothesis, based on the information provided by a combination of molecular simulation and experiments, is that a CO2 adsorption reduction on the surface of the ZIF-9 would enhance the molecular sieving effect of this ZIF-9 layer and therefore the selectivity in the H2/CO2 mixture separation of the entire membrane. This reduction would be achieved by means of a less-CO2-adsorptive methylimidazolate-based ZIF-67 or ZIF-8 layer coating the ZIF-9. ZIF-8/ZIF-9 and ZIF-67/ZIF-9 double-layered membranes were prepared and characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM, FIB, TEM and EDS. This unprecedented strategy led to a H2/CO2 separation selectivity of 9.6 together with a 250 GPU H2 permeance at 150 °C, showing a significant improvement with respect to the pure ZIF-9 membrane. Double-layered membranes also showed higher apparent CO2 activation energies than single-layered membranes, attributable to a diminished adsorption.

Graphical abstract: On the molecular mechanisms for the H2/CO2 separation performance of zeolite imidazolate framework two-layered membranes

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
03 jun 2016
Accepted
06 aug 2016
First published
09 aug 2016
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Chem. Sci., 2017,8, 325-333

Author version available

On the molecular mechanisms for the H2/CO2 separation performance of zeolite imidazolate framework two-layered membranes

F. Cacho-Bailo, I. Matito-Martos, J. Perez-Carbajo, M. Etxeberría-Benavides, O. Karvan, V. Sebastián, S. Calero, C. Téllez and J. Coronas, Chem. Sci., 2017, 8, 325 DOI: 10.1039/C6SC02411D

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