NOVEL COPOLYMERS WITH AN IMPROVED COMBINATION OF HIGH PERMEABILITY AND HIGH SELECTIVITY FOR USE IN MAKING MEMBRANES FOR GAS AND VAPOR SEPARATIONS

THIS PROGRAM IS FOCUSED ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF POLYMERS FOR A NEW CLASS OF MEMBRANES THAT OFFER AN EXCEPTIONAL COMBINATION OF HIGH PERMEABILITY AND HIGH SELECTIVITY COMPARED WITH THAT OF CONVENTIONAL MEMBRANES. THESE HIGH-PERFORMANCE MEMBRANES ARE BASED ON SUBSTITUTED POLYACETYLENES-POLYMERS THAT ARE STRUCTURALLY SIMILAR TO POLYTRIMETHYLSILYLPROPYNE (RTMSP). PTMSP HAS THE HIGHEST PERMEABILITY REPORTED FOR A POLYMER, BUT VERY LOW SELECTIVITY. RESEARCHERS BELIEVE THAT BY PLACING THE PROPER SUBSTITUENT GROUPS ON POLYACETYLENES, POLYMERS THAT OFFER AN EXCEPTIONAL COMBINATION OF HIGH PERMEABILITY AND HIGH SELECTIVITY CAN BE SYNTHESIZED. MEMBRANES MADE FROM THESE POLYMERS MAY REDUCE THE COSTS OF MANY COMMERCIALLY IMPORTANT SEPARATIONS AND ALLOW MEMBRANE SYSTEMS TO CAPTURE A LARGER SHARE OF THE GAS- AND VAPOR-SEPARATIONS MARKET. RESEARCHERS PLAN TO DEMONSTRATE FEASIBILITY BY SYNTHESIZING PROPRIETARY SUBSTITUTED POLYACETYLENES, AND FABRICATING MEMBRANES THAT OFFER IMPROVED COMBINATIONS OF PERMEABILITY AND SELECTIVITY OVER THOSE OF CONVENTIONAL MEMBRANES.