Functionalized Boron Nitride Nanosheets: A Thermally Rearranged Polymer Nanocomposite Membrane for Hydrogen Separation

Yuqi Wang, Ze Xian Low, Seungju Kim, Huacheng Zhang, Xiaofang Chen, Jue Hou, Jong Geun Seong, Young Moo Lee, George P. Simon, Chris H.J. Davies, Huanting Wang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

52 Scopus citations

Abstract

Amino functionalized boron nitride nanosheets (FBN) were incorporated into a crosslinked, thermally rearranged polyimide (XTR) to fabricate FBN-XTR nanocomposite membrane. The FBN-XTR membrane exhibited a small decrease in H2 permeability but demonstrated a remarkably increased H2 gas selectivity over other gases, compared with XTR. The XTR membrane heat-treated at 425 °C had a H2 permeability of 210 Barrers and a H2/CH4 separation factor of 24.1, whereas the nanocomposite membrane with 1 wt % FBN exhibited a H2 permeability of 110 Barrers and H2/CH4 separation factor of 275, an order of magnitude greater. At 1 wt % FBN loading, the FBN-XTR membrane showed three times higher tensile strength and 60 % higher elongation than pristine XTR membrane. In addition, FBN-XTR was found to be able to be readily processed into thin-film membranes for practical H2 separation applications.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)16056-16061
Number of pages6
JournalAngewandte Chemie - International Edition
Volume57
Issue number49
DOIs
StatePublished - 3 Dec 2018
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • boron nitride nanosheets
  • gas separation
  • membranes
  • polymers

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Functionalized Boron Nitride Nanosheets: A Thermally Rearranged Polymer Nanocomposite Membrane for Hydrogen Separation'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this