Mixed-gas CO2/CH4 and CO2/N2 separation with sulfonated PEEK membranes

This paper describes the performance of sulfonated aromatic poly(ether ether ketone) (S-PEEK) membranes, directly prepared from the sulfonated monomer, for CO2 separation from gas mixtures containing N2 or CH4. Dense membranes with different degrees of sulfonation were prepared via solvent evaporation. Increasing degree of sulfonation simultaneously improves the permeability and selectivity of both gas pairs. The effect of counterions was investigated by converting S-PEEK membranes from the Na+-form in which they are prepared, to the H+ and multivalent cationic forms. Gas permeability and selectivity for polymers with divalent and trivalent counterions were higher than those for polymers in the monovalent and H+-forms. In order to study the stability and potential industrial application of these membranes, they were tested at different conditions of feed pressure, temperature and CO2 feed concentration.

Research highlights
► Synthesis of S-PEEK membranes for separation of CO2 from gas mixtures.
► Membrane with high degree of sulfonation show good separation performance.
► Membranes show excellent CO2 anti-plasticization properties.