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Effect of Branch Length on the Structural and Separation Properties of Hyperbranched Poly(1,3-dioxolane)

Journal Article · · Macromolecules
 [1];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [4];  [2]
  1. State Univ. of New York at Buffalo, NY (United States); University at Buffalo
  2. State Univ. of New York at Buffalo, NY (United States)
  3. Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
  4. Univ. of Colorado, Boulder, CO (United States)
Polymers containing poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) demonstrate superior membrane CO2/N2 separation properties owing to their polar ether oxygen groups exhibiting strong affinity toward CO2. Poly(1,3-dioxolane) (PDXL) shows an ether oxygen content higher than PEO and is expected to have higher CO2/N2 solubility selectivity. However, similar to PEO, the high crystallinity of PDXL greatly reduces its gas permeability. Herein, amorphous PDXL-based hyperbranched polymers were synthesized by ring opening of 1,3-dioxolane (DXL) to form poly(1,3-dioxolane) acrylate (DXLAn) followed by photopolymerization. The repeating unit of DXL (n) or branch length was systematically varied from 4 to 12 to yield amorphous polymers. The chemical and physical properties of the obtained polymers (PDXLAn) were thoroughly evaluated and used to interpret pure- and mixed-gas transport characteristics. The polymers exhibit attractive CO2/N2 and CO2/CH4 separation properties. For example, PDXLA8 exhibits a CO2 permeability of 220 Barrer and CO2/N2 selectivity of 56 at 35 °C, surpassing Robeson’s 2008 upper bound, and it shows robust separation performance when evaluated with simulated flue gas at 60 °C. This study demonstrates that hyperbranched structures are an effective route to construct amorphous yet highly polar polymers and that chain end groups are instrumental in determining the structural and gas transport characteristics.
Research Organization:
State Univ. of New York at Buffalo, NY (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
National Science Foundation (NSF); USDOE Office of Fossil Energy (FE)
Grant/Contract Number:
FE0031736
OSTI ID:
1865820
Journal Information:
Macromolecules, Journal Name: Macromolecules Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 55; ISSN 0024-9297
Publisher:
American Chemical SocietyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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