Diffusion in gas separation membrane materials: A comparison and analysis of experimental characterization techniques

✍ Scribed by Catherine M. Zimmerman; Anshu Singh; William J. Koros

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 154 KB
• Volume: 36
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0887-6266
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-0488(19980730)36:10<1747::aid-polb16>3.0.co;2-9

✦ Synopsis

Typically, materials with high-performance transport properties such as zeolites, carbon molecular sieves, or hyper rigid polymers are inherently difficult or impossible to characterize by steady-state membrane permeation experiments used for conventional polymers. Diffusion coefficients determined by transient sorption, a measurement easily performed on brittle media, are analyzed here and compared to those determined by steady-state permeation/sorption and transient permeation for a glassy polymer and a carbon molecular sieve. Average and local diffusion coefficients are extrapolated to zero upstream partial pressure to eliminate effects caused by concentration dependence. Good agreement between the techniques was observed for the glassy polymer. On the other hand, carbon molecular sieves, possessing a more complex morphology, exhibit a greater difference in diffusion coefficients determined by the various techniques. Nevertheless, comparison of the analysis techniques is shown to provide potentially valuable insights into the morphological features of such carbon molecular sieves.