Renewable energy technologies have gained use as a means of combating the causes of global climate change. Nevertheless, even with 100% renewable energy, chemicals manufacturing will still produce carbon dioxide emissions. Current gas separation techniques are both energy and cost intensive, meaning that we need affordable technologies that can scrub CO2 from exhaust streams. My research focuses on developing more effective gas separation membranes that can be used to separate CO2 from a mixture of other gases. Specifically, my work uses reactive vapors to grow metal organic frameworks (MOFs) in situ within polymer membranes. The incorporation of these MOFs has already been shown to improve the performance of gas separation membranes. Using vapor phase infiltration to grow these crystallites in situ will further improve the gas separation properties of these membranes, while also making them easier to manufacture. These membranes could be applied to carbon capture systems and other gas separations to further aid in the transition to clean energy and decarbonization.
Advisor: David Bergsman – Chemical Engineering