Abstract
The development of porous polymeric membranes is an important area of application in separation technology. This article summarizes the development of porous polymers from the perspectives of materials and methods for membrane production. Polymers such as polyethylene, polydimethylsiloxane, polypropylene, polyimide, and polytetrafluoroethylene are reviewed due to their outstanding thermal stability, chemical resistance, mechanical strength, and low cost. Six different methods for membrane fabrication are critically reviewed, including thermally induced phase separation, melt-spinning and cold-stretching, phase separation micromolding, imprinting/soft molding, manual punching, and three-dimensional printing. Each method is described in details related to the strategy used to produce the porous polymeric membranes with a specific morphology and separation performances. The key factors associated with each method are presented, including solvent/non-solvent system type and composition, polymer solution composition and concentration, processing parameters, and ambient conditions. Current challenges are also described, leading to future development and innovation to improve these membranes in terms of materials, fabrication equipment, and possible modifications.
Highlights
In the field of membrane technology, a successful membrane is a barrier to selectively transport substances of interest
The membrane morphology can be tailored by the precise control of the fabrication methods and processing conditions
The results showed that when water and DINCH were used as the heat transfer medium, a layer of amorphous phase and fewer uniform pores—which only had a small part of the slit-shaped pores—were obtained on the surface, because the fast cooling rate froze the surface molecules and decreased the crystallinity and orientation
Summary
Polyethylene, Polydimethylsiloxane, Polypropylene, Polyimide, and Polytetrafluoroethylene College of Environment and Resources, Chongqing Technology and Business University, No.19, Xuefu Ave, Nan’an District, Chongqing 400067, China Department of Chemical Engineering, Laval University, 1065 Avenue de la Médecine, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
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