Influence of the intermediate layer on the hydrothermal stability of sol-gel derived hybrid silica membranes

The hydrothermal stability of microporous silica hybrid sol-gel derived membranes is often only tested for either the mesoporous intermediate membrane layer or the microporous separation layer. In this work an investigation is done on the interaction between the intermediate γ-alumina layer and the hybrid (BTESE-derived) silica separation layer during hydrothermal treatment. Although bare γ-alumina is degraded during a hydrothermal treatment, a coating of hydrophobic BTESE on γ-alumina retains its gas separation performance, albeit with a lower mechanical adhesion between the hybrid silica separation layer and the γ-alumina intermediate layer. Applying a monoaluminumphosphate (MAP) coating between the α-alumina support and the γ-alumina layer stabilizes the γ-alumina membrane. A BTESE coating on a MAP modified γ-alumina membrane did not show any signs of delamination after hydrothermal testing. Moreover, a significant increase in the H2/N2 (perm)selectivity, factor 3, was observed for these membranes.