A novel multi-armed and star-like poly(ethylene oxide) membrane for CO2 separation

• A multi-armed and star-like poly(ethylene oxide) membrane was prepared.
• The solubility selectivity dominates the permeation–separation process.
• The membranes exhibit excellent CO2/N2 and CO2/CH4 separation performances.
• The CO2/N2 separation performance exceeds Robeson upper-boundary.

A series of cross-linked poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) membranes with a multi-armed and star-like structure was prepared by photo-polymerization. The structure characterization was performed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The thermal property was evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The inter-segmental distance of polymer chain was investigated by wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). The density was determined by a hydrostatic weighing method. The permeation performances for N2, CH4 and CO2 were reported. The relationship between gas permeation performances and physical properties was also discussed. The star-like PEO membranes exhibit excellent permeation–separation performances for CO2/N2 and CO2/CH4. The permeation–separation performance for CO2/N2 exceeds the Robeson upper-boundary. The star-like PEO membranes display a positive potential application for industrial-scale CO2 separation.

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