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Atmospheric CO2/CH4 permeability of EVA copolymer/SiO2 composite membrane for biogas purification
Author(s)
Date Issued
September 10, 2021
Type
Article
Abstract
The CO2 and CH4 permeabilities of poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) (EVA)/SiO2 composite membrane were investigated at atmospheric pressure. The membranes were fabricated by compression molding and characterized by Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, a universal testing machine, and a contact angle analyzer. The effect of vinyl acetate content (18–33 wt%) wasevaluated for both single-gas and mixed-gas permeation systems. A non-pressurized homemade-permeation cell was used for the single-gas permeation of CO2 and CH4, while a tubular membrane was utilized for a continuous separation of CO2/CH4 mixture. CO2 flux was readily increased (from 0.7 to 2.0 ml/m2.s) with vinyl acetate content (18–33 wt%). The enhanced CO2 permeability is attributed to the increase in polarity and also the decrease in crystallinity of the membrane. A satisfied gas separation selectivity (CO2/CH4) of 4.31 could be obtained from tubular membrane with 28 wt% VA content. The incorporation of SiO2 as a filler (0.5–2.0 wt%) especially increased the membrane polarity and hence the CO2 flux up to 6.0 ml/m2.s. However, the CH4 flux was not affected by VA and SiO2 contents.
Citation
Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 138(42), 2021