Recent progress on thin film composite membranes for CO2 separation

Abstract

• The promising membranes for CO 2 separation are discussed. • The exploration of CO 2 separation membrane in pilot-scale are presented. • The challenges of materials and membrane preparation in large-scale are briefly analyzed. The excess CO 2 emission into the atmosphere is one of the important environmental issues nowadays. It is urgent to develop environmentally friendly and low energy technologies to reduce the CO 2 emission. Membrane technology shows great potential in CO 2 separation because of the inherent merit over other conventional separation techniques. High permselectivity membranes play a vital role in efficient membrane processes. The thin film composite membranes with excellent performance have attracted more and more attentions. In this review, the CO 2 separation membranes are grouped into dense polymer membranes, microporous material membranes and mixed matrix membranes. A number of representative membranes with high performance are highlighted. In addition, the exploration of CO 2 separation membrane in pilot-scale are presented, followed by a brief analysis on the challenges of materials and membrane preparation in large-scale. Finally, the direction for further research is also discussed. It is believed that the review provides potential insights and guidance for the future development of thin film composite membranes for CO 2 separation, and hence promote the development of membrane.