The effect of ethane on the performance of commercial polyphenylene oxide and Cardo-type polyimide hollow fiber membranes in CO_2/CH_4 separation applications

摘要

Impurities such as hydrogen sulfide, water vapor and heavy hydrocarbons in natural gas have considerable effects on the membrane performance. Small amounts of condensable and polymer soluble components in the feed gas cause swelling or plasticization of glassy membranes, leading to a reduction in membrane selectivity. In the present research the influence of ethane was investigated on the permeance and selectivity of two commercially available hollow fiber membranes, namely Cardo-type polyimide and PPO hollow fibers for CO/CH, separations. It was concluded that the gas mixture permeation rate was increased in the presence of C_2H_6. However, the CO_2/CH_4 separation factors remained almost the same in the presence and absence of the C_2H_6.