NEW PROCESS FOR HOLLOW-FIBER PLASMA-POLYMER MEMBRANES

MEMBRANE SEPARATIONS ARE ATTRACTIVE, ENERGY-EFFICIENT PROCESSES FOR NUMEROUS APPLICATIONS IN CHEMICAL PROCESSING AND WASTE TREATMENT. CONVENTIONAL MEMBRANE POLYMERS, HOWEVER, ARE NOT SUFFICIENTLY SELECTIVE OR RESISTANT TO ORGANIC SOLVENTS TO BE USEFUL IN MANY APPLICATIONS. MEMBRANES MADE FROM PLASMA POLYMERS OFFER POTENTIALLY GREAT IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTH SELECTIVITY AND RESISTANCE TO SOLVENTS. PLASMA POLYMERS HAVE HIGHLY CROSSLINKED STRUCTURES AND CAN FORM VERY THIN, UNIFORM MEMBRANES. PLASMA MEMBRANES HAVE NOT BEEN COMMERCIALIZED FOR SEPARATIONS APPLICATIONS BECAUSE THEY ARE TOO BRITTLE TO ALLOW NORMAL HANDLING AND MODULARIZATION. THE GOAL OF THIS PROGRAM IS TO DEVELOP A NEW PROCESS FOR MAKING HOLLOW-FIBER PLASMA-POLYMER MEMBRANES THAT CAN BE EASILY HANDLED AND MODULARIZED, BY USING NOVEL STRUCTURES THAT IMPART FLEXIBILITY TO PLASMA-POLYMER MEMBRANES. RESEARCHERS HAVE RECENTLY PREPARED HIGHLY SELECTIVE, FLEXIBLE, FLAT-SHEET PLASMA MEMBRANES, AND BELIEVE THAT THIS APPROACH CAN BE USED FOR HOLLOW FIBERS WHICH ARE ATTRACTIVE FOR MODULARIZATION. THE FEASIBILITY OF THIS APPROACH IS BEING DEMONSTRATED BY INVESTIGATING THE SEPARATION OF OXYGEN AND NITROGEN FROM AIR. IF THIS WORK IS SUCCESSFUL, IT SHOULD ALSO BE ATTRACTIVE FOR OTHER SEPARATIONS IN THE CHEMICAL PROCESS INDUSTRY.