Structured emulsion-templated porous copolymer based on photopolymerization for carbon capture

•Porous hydrogel copolymers of acrylamide (AAM) and acrylic acid (AAC) were synthesized for CO2 capture.•The CO2 and N2 adsorption data demonstrated that the hydrogel copolymers were selective for CO2.•The hydrogel copolymers were capable of capturing CO2 in the presence of water.

Porous hydrogel copolymers of acrylamide (AAM) and acrylic acid (AAC) were structured in the form of monoliths and granules. AAM-co-AAC porous copolymer monoliths were synthesized using high internal phase emulsion (HIPE) as template and photopolymerization. For granulation, photopolymerization was used for the fabrication of the AAM-co-AAC hydrogel, which was subsequently freeze-granulated. The structural analysis (FTIR and XRD) confirmed the successful synthesis of hydrogel copolymers. The CO2 uptake capacity of structured AAM-co-AAC copolymers was evaluated through adsorption and absorption mechanisms by volumetric and gravimetric methods, respectively. The granules exhibited the CO2 adsorption uptake of 0.8 mmol g−1 at 25 kPa and 298 K. The CO2 and N2 adsorption data demonstrated that the hydrogel copolymers were selective for CO2. Furthermore, the granules were capable of capturing CO2 in the presence of water. The results of absorption of CO2 on water-swollen granules demonstrated that CO2-uptake capacity increases with increasing water content up to 1.8 mmol g−1.

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