GAS PERMEATION STUDIES OF THE COVALENT ORGANIC FRAMEWORKS (COFs) BASED MIXED MATRIX MEMBRANES (MMMs)

Mixed Matrix Membranes (MMMs) combine a continuous organic polymer phase with a distributed porous additive, i.e. filler, and benefit from the ease processability of polymers as well as the improved gas separation performance of diverse porous filler materials. MMMs may have separation qualities that outperform the selectivity/permeability trade-off reported in pure polymer membranes. All MMMs require a polymer phase and a filler, and in this research a Pebax-1657 is used as a matrix and for filler a Covalent organic framework (COF) as it is less understood. Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) represent a category of porous organic polymers that have garnered significant interest across various fields, including gas adsorption and storage, catalysis, sensing, and photovoltaics. These frameworks offer outstanding characteristics such as permanent porosity, high surface areas, and easily adjustable frameworks [3]. Additionally, their entirely organic composition can lead to enhanced interactions between fillers and polymers, mitigating the formation of nonselective defects during mixed-matrix membrane (MMM) preparation that are often seen with using other sorts of fillers such as silica and metal- organic frameworks (MOFs). Once synthesized the MMMs which are based on COF will be tested in an in house built gas permeance setup to test for single gas permeance, giving us deep insight into the performance of the COF bas MMMs.