Prof.  LOW Siew  Chun
Universiti Sains Malaysia,  Malaysia

Title: Enhancing CO2 Capture Efficiency in Membrane Gas Absorption through Dual-Wetting PVDF Membranes

Abstract:

Membrane Gas Absorption (MGA) is a recognized cost-effective technique for the efficient capture of carbon dioxide (CO2). Enhancing membrane hydrophobicity has been a key focus in improving membrane stability for long-term CO2 capture using MGA. However, the relatively low CO2 absorption flux remains a significant limitation. This study aims to address this by fabricating a CO2-philic thin film on the membrane surface to enhance CO2 absorption efficiency. We evaluated two polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes, PVDF/EDA and PVDF/GO, which were coated with ethylenediamine (EDA) and graphene oxide (GO) respectively. The membranes exhibited distinct wetting behaviors, with the CO2-philic surface showing a water contact angle (WCA) of 49.6° ± 2.7, and the superhydrophobic surface showing a WCA of 149.8° ± 3.3 and a surface area (SA) of 9.9° ± 3.3. These asymmetric dual-wetting properties contributed to the enhanced MGA performance of the PVDF/EDA/GO membranes. The modified membranes demonstrated a CO2 absorption flux of 0.0040 mol/m²s and a selectivity of 6, significantly outperforming the pristine PVDF membrane, which had a selectivity of 3.0. This study highlights the potential of dual-wetting membranes, with a hydrophilic CO2-philic side and a superhydrophobic side, as a promising approach for efficient CO2 capture in MGA applications.

Biography: