Carbon Dioxide CaptureModified zeolite Y membranes for high-performance CO2 separation. The NeedSupported zeolite films/membranes with controlled microstructures are important in applications as diverse as catalysis, ion-exchange, nuclear waste disposal, light harvesting devices, chemical sensing, and gas separations. Separation by zeolite membranes are controlled by two factors. The first is size exclusion, in which certain species are discriminated against since they cannot enter into zeolite pores due to size restrictions. Second, for those molecules that enter into the zeolite pores, membrane transport and separation are dependent upon a combination of affinity (sorption) and mobility (diffusion). CO2 separation is one of the most studied applications for zeolite Y membranes because of its industrial significance, such as CO2 capture for carbon sequestration, natural gas purification, and separation of product streams from water gas shift reactions for hydrogen production. The Market
The TechnologyThe Ohio State researchers, led by Dr. Prabir Dutta, developed membranes of modified zeolite Y that were two micrometers thick and free of pinholes on smooth, multi-layer graded alumina ceramic supports. The thin, supported membranes exhibited high CO2 permeance and selectivity. They are stable for up to three months as there were no indications of any degradation mechanisms. To produce industry required permeance, the membranes can be constructed with lower thicknesses to magnitudes of nanometers. At these thicknesses, pinholes have been known to develop in membranes, but the researchers have separately developed a non-selective polymer modification to account for this phenomenon. Patent Protection
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Tech IDT2009-122 CollegeLicensing ManagerZinn, Ryan InventorsCategories |