Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee (UT), Knoxville, are advancing gas membrane materials to expand practical technology options for reducing industrial carbon emissions. Results published in Chem demonstrate a fabrication method for membrane materials that can overcome current bottlenecks in selectivity and permeability, key variables that drive carbon-capturing performance in real environments.
The concept is simple: a thin, porous membrane acts as a filter for exhaust gas mixtures, selectively allowing carbon dioxide, or CO2, to flow through freely into a collector that is kept under reduced pressure, but preventing oxygen, nitrogen and other gases from tagging along. Unlike existing chemical methods to capture CO2 from industrial processes, membranes are easy to install and can operate unattended for long periods with no additional steps or added energy costs. The catch is that new, cost-effective materials are needed to scale up the technology for commercial adoption.
The basic discovery expands the limited library of practical options for carbon-capture membranes and opens new directions for developing fluorinated membranes with other task-specific functionalities. Researchers aim to next investigate the mechanism by which fluorinated membranes absorb and transport CO2, a fundamental step that will inform the design of better carbon-capture systems with materials purposely tailored to grab CO2 emissions.
Source: Bio Market Insights
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