The objective of this project is to develop a highly selective and cost-effective inorganic/polymer composite membrane to separate CO2 from N2with applications in coal-fired power plants. This membrane consists of a thin continuously grown zeolite Y layer embedded in a PES support. Continuous zeolite layer was grown from 40 nm zeolite seeds vacuum dip-coated on PES support. A rapid synthesis strategy was developed for secondary growth of the zeolite membrane in ~ 1 hour.X-ray diffraction (XRD) of the zeolite/PES membrane showed the characteristic signal of zeolite Y at 2?=6.4. The top-view and cross sectional morphology of the zeolite layer of membrane was studied with scanning electron microscope. A continuous, submicron zeolite layer which partially grew into the pore of support was observed. Tape tests show that the grown zeolite layer is mechanically stable, which is proposed to be caused by the anchoring function of the zeolites that grow into the pores of polymer support. The effects of support pore size, gel coating methods and seeds loading amount and position on seeded support were also studied. Transport properties of the zeolite/polymer membranes were also examined. SEM of A. Bare PES 300kDa support; B. 0.1 wt% seed solution coated seed support; C. Top and D. Cross-Section view of grown zeolite Y membrane on top of PES support

Synthesis and characterization of zeolite y/polyethersulfone (PES) membranes for gas separation

247th National Meeting (2014)

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