Membrane for CO2 Separation

Abstract

Among various CO2-capture technologies, membrane separation is considered as one of the promising solutions, because of its energy efficiency and operation simplicity. Many research and development are conducted for the (1) CO2/N2 (post-combustion: CO2 separation from flue gas), (2) CO2/CH4 (CO2 separation from natural gas), and (3) CO2/H2 (pre-combustion: CO2 separation from integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) processes). In this chapter, research and development of various types of membranes (polymeric membranes, inorganic membranes, ionic liquid membranes, and facilitated transport membranes) for these applications are briefly reviewed. In the latter part of the chapter, the development of “molecular gate” membrane modules by the authors for the pre-combustion to separate CO2 from H2 at the integrated coal gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plants are reviewed.