Constructing Strong Interfacial Interactions under Mild Conditions in MOF-Incorporated Mixed Matrix Membranes for Gas Separation

Although mixed matrix membranes (MMM) possess remarkably improved gas separation performance compared to traditional polymeric membranes, membrane stability including CO 2 plasticization and aging is still a serious issue due to the existence of interfacial defects. In this work, we report an efficient and less destructive route to cross-link the MOFs/polyimide (PI) MMM, where amine group-functionalized MOF (NH 2 -UiO-66) nanoparticles are thermally cross-linked with a carboxylic acid-functionalized PI (COOH-PI) matrix to form an amide bond at the interface at 150 °C under vacuum condition. Such a chemical cross-linking strategy conducted at a relatively mild condition improves membrane stability greatly while ensuring that the membrane structure is not destroyed. The resulting cross-linked MMM achieves enhanced mechanical strength with higher Young’s modulus than a pristine polymer membrane. The CO 2 antiplasticization pressure of the MMM after cross-linking is enhanced by 200% from ∼10 to >30 bar and the CO 2 permeability of MMM only drops slightly from 995 to 735 Barrer after 450 days. At the same time, the separation performance of H 2 /CH 4 gas pair surpasses the 2008 upper bound and that of CO 2 /CH 4 gas pair nearly approaches the 2008 upper bound. The cross-linking strategy used herein provides a feasible and effective route for improving membrane stability and membrane performance in the MMM system for gas separation.