AlruwailI Badar M, Saeed Usman, Ahmad Iqbal, Al-Turaif Hamad, Aboalkhair Hani, AlsaiarI Abdulmohsen O
Chemical & Materials Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21442, Saudi Arabia.
Center of Excellence in Desalination Technology, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21442, Saudi Arabia.
Membranes (Basel). 2021 Sep 30;11(10):760. doi: 10.3390/membranes11100760.
Currently, gas separation (GS) membranes are produced from petrochemical-based polymers, but their lifespan is severely impacting the environment. Therefore, there has recently been growing interest in developing ecofriendly biodegradable polymer-based GS membranes. This study developed a polylactic acid (PLA)/polybutylene succinate (PBS) blend composite membrane for GS using the dry/wet phase inversion technique. The influence of the multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) concentration in the PLA/PBS blend was studied by investigating tensile properties, porosity, percentage crystallinity, contact angle, and gas permeance.The obtained results demonstrate that the addition of MWCNT enhances the tensile strength, porosity, and percentage crystallinity, whereas it decreases the contact angle. The pure gas permeation was investigated at pressures of 2-4 bar at 25 °C. The gas permeation study revealed that the PLA/PBS blend with 0.5% wt. MWCNT enhanced the gas permeance and selectivity at 4 bar. The gas permeance acquired at 25 °C and 4 bar for PLA/PBS reinforced with MWCNT was highest in hydrogen followed by carbon dioxide, argon, and nitrogen. Additionally, a study of the membrane morphology illustrated the uniform dispersion of MWCNT in the PLA/PBS blend. The investigation concluded that membranes containing MWCNT are capable of separating gases at the molecular level, thereby reducing energy consumption.
目前，气体分离（GS）膜由石化基聚合物制成，但其使用寿命对环境造成严重影响。因此，最近人们对开发基于环保型可生物降解聚合物的GS膜越来越感兴趣。本研究采用干/湿相转化技术制备了一种用于气体分离的聚乳酸（PLA）/聚丁二酸丁二醇酯（PBS）共混复合膜。通过研究拉伸性能、孔隙率、结晶度百分比、接触角和气体渗透率，考察了多壁碳纳米管（MWCNT）在PLA/PBS共混物中的浓度影响。所得结果表明，添加MWCNT可提高拉伸强度、孔隙率和结晶度百分比，而降低接触角。在25℃、2-4巴压力下对纯气体渗透进行了研究。气体渗透研究表明，含0.5%重量比MWCNT的PLA/PBS共混物在4巴时提高了气体渗透率和选择性。在25℃和4巴下，MWCNT增强的PLA/PBS的气体渗透率以氢气最高，其次是二氧化碳、氩气和氮气。此外，对膜形态的研究表明MWCNT在PLA/PBS共混物中均匀分散。研究得出结论，含MWCNT的膜能够在分子水平上分离气体，从而降低能耗。
