SBIR Phase I: Plasticization-Resistant Hybrid Membranes for Olefin-Paraffin Separations

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will focus on the separation of olefin/paraffin vapor mixtures using organic-inorganic hybrid membranes. These membranes consist of thin selective layers that contain an interconnected network of nano-sized inorganic particles dispersed in a polymer matrix. The inorganic network increases membrane durability and inhibits swelling of the polymer selective layer. This allows the membranes to retain high olefin/paraffin selectivities at challenging industrial conditions. By the appropriate combination of the inorganic phase with the matrix polymer, it will be possible to develop membranes capable of efficiently separating a wide variety of vapor/vapor mixtures. The broader impacts (commercial potential) of this project will be the development of a new type of vapor/vapor selective membrane. If the technology is successfully developed, membranes could be tailored to perform a variety of important commercial separations. Systems based on such membranes would provide serious competition to distillation, the workhorse separation technology of the petrochemical and refining industries.