Selective CO2 permeation properties of a membrane composed of a three-component polymer blend and cesium carbonate

ABSTRACT A high-performance CO2 separation membrane was fabricated using a composite polymer composed of a crosslinked acrylic acid polymer sodium salt, sodium polyacrylate, polyvinyl alcohol, and cesium carbonate. Evaluation tests were conducted by varying the relative humidity (RH), temperature, total pressure (Ptotal), and CO2 partial pressure (PCO2) to determine optimal parameters for enhanced performance in selective CO2 permeation over He. The membrane shows a high separation performance and durability at 50% RH and 85°C, where the CO2/He selectivity exceeds 550 under conditions of Ptotal:0.1 MPa and PCO2:0.08 MPa. Furthermore, the operational stability of the membrane was evaluated at 85°C, 50% RH, Ptotal:0.7 MPa, and PCO2:0.56 MPa. The as-fabricated membrane was stable for 300 h of continuous operation in the separation performance evaluation test. The findings of this study suggest that the developed membranes can be applied for CO2 separation from gas mixtures such as CO2/H2 with high efficiency and stability.