Molecularly Mixed Composite Membranes for Advanced Separation Processes

Molecular mixing of filler and polymer results in homogeneous pathway for molecules and dramatic improvements in membrane performance. Left: traditional mixed matrix membrane; right: molecularly mixed.

Abstract

Porous organic cages (POCs) are individual soluble, porous molecules. When fabricated into mixed‐matrix membranes (MMMs), the soluble POC molecules have the potential to exhibit intimate molecular‐level mixing with the polymer matrix. POCs have only recently been incorporated into mixed matrix membrane materials, but this process has not yet resulted in significant improvements of membrane performance. Now, vertex‐functionalized amorphous scrambled porous organic cages (ASPOCs) have been utilized as membrane performance enhancers and the amorphous ASPOC mixtures are observed to distribute throughout the matrix without any indication of particle formation or agglomeration, creating unique, molecularly mixed composite membranes. Overall, the molecularly mixed composite membrane provide significant increases in both membrane permeability and selectivity, offering new avenues for creation of membranes with unique properties in industrially relevant separations.

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