Preparation and characterization of acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene/poly(vinyl acetate) membrane for CO 2 removal

Abstract

CO 2 removal from different gas streams via the polymeric membranes has been propounded as an important issue in greenhouse gas emissions control, natural gas upgrading, and enhanced oil recovery. Here, polymeric blend membranes were prepared from acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene (ABS) and poly vinyl acetate (PVAc), and their CO 2/N 2 and CO 2/CH 4 separation characteristics were investigated. The influence of different PVAc contents on gas separation performance and the effect of pressure, ranging from 1 to 8 bar, on CO 2 permeability were studied. Furthermore, the morphology of the membranes was analyzed by FTIR, XRD, DSC and SEM. It was shown that the highest CO 2 permeability of 5.72 Barrer for the membrane containing 10 wt.% PVAc, the highest CO 2/CH 4 selectivity was 29 in 20 wt.% PVAc and CO 2/N 2 was 40.41 in 30 wt.% PVAc contents. These results comprised from different effective factors such as PVAc acetate polar groups, compactness in polymer matrix at the presence of high molecular weight PVAc, and the acrylonitrile and flexible butadiene contents of ABS. Furthermore, in the transmembrane pressure of 2–8 bar the CO 2 permeability approximately descended with the pressure increase for PVAc content of 0–40 wt.%, and it ascended for 50–60 wt.%. Generally, the prepared membranes can be taken into account as better membranes for CO 2/N 2 separation than CO 2/CH 4.