• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.20 no.9
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• pp.451-456
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• 2010

A promising candidate material for a $H_2$ permeable membrane is SiC due to its many unique properties. A hydrogen-selective SiC membrane was successfully fabricated on the outer surface of an intermediate multilayer $\gamma-Al_2O_3$ with a graded structure. The $\gamma-Al_2O_3$ multilayer was formed on top of a macroporous $\alpha-Al_2O_3$ support by consecutively dipping into a set of successive solutions containing boehmite sols of different particle sizes and then calcining. The boehmite sols were prepared from an aluminum isopropoxide precursor and heated to $80^{\circ}C$ with high speed stirring for 24 hrs to hydrolyze the precursor. Then the solutions were refluxed at $92^{\circ}C$ for 20 hrs to form a boehmite precipitate. The particle size of the boehmite sols was controlled according to various experimental parameters, such as acid types and acid concentrations. The topmost SiC layer was formed on top of the intermediate $\gamma-Al_2O_3$ by pyrolysis of a SiC precursor, polycarbosilane, in an Ar atmosphere. The resulting amorphous SiC-on-$Al_2O_3$ composite membrane pyrolyzed at $900^{\circ}C$ possessed a high $H_2$ permeability of $3.61\times10^{-7}$ $mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}{\cdot}Pa^{-1}$ and the $H_2/CO_2$ selectivity was much higher than the theoretical value of 4.69 in all permeation temperature ranges. Gas permeabilities through a SiC membrane are affected by Knudsen diffusion and a surface diffusion mechanism, which are based on the molecular weight of gas species and movement of adsorbed gas molecules on the surface of the pores.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.57 no.4
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• pp.507-511
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• 2019

Hydrogen permeability is widely used to evaluate the polymer membrane durability of polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEMFC). Linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) is mainly used to measure hydrogen permeability easily. There are many differences in LSV measurement method among researchers, and it is often difficult to compare the results. Therefore, in this study, we tried to confirm the accuracy by comparing the hydrogen permeability of LSV method and gas chromatograph which is difficult to measure but accurate value. The LSV method used the DOE and NEDO methods. When the hydrogen permeability was measured by varying the temperature and the relative humidity, the DOE LSV method showed an accuracy of less than 5% in the error range compared with the GC method. In the NEDO LSV method, the error was reduced when the hydrogen permeation current density was determined at the current value of 0.3 V as the DOE method.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.598-605
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• 2016

V-Cr-Y alloy is a material for hydrogen separation membrane possessing high transmittance and selectivity. In order to increase the rate of hydrogen permeation flux through the membrane, V-Cr-Y thin film was prepared using a sputtering technique and was investigated focusing on its basic properties. Thin film was deposited on a silicon wafer using a target including V (89.8%), Cr (10.0%) and Y(0.2%), and results of EDS analysis confirm that the ratio of metal in thin film agrees with that in the target. Higher sputtering temperature and power resulted in more rapid growth rate of the thin film and larger size of the crystals, and denser and finer crystal structure was observed when lower pressure was applied. An optimal sputtering condition was found with RF, 2mTorr, 300W and ambient temperature, and a suitable V-Cr-Y thin film for hydrogen separation was obtained upon heat treatment of the thin film prepared in this way.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.46 no.6
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• pp.248-257
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• 2013

It is generally recognized that thin Pd-Cu alloy films fabricated by sputtering show a wide range of microstructures and properties, both of which are highly dependent on the sputtering conditions. In view of this, the present study aims to investigate the relationship between the performance of hydrogen separation membranes and the microstructure of Pd alloy films depending on sputtering deposition conditions such as substrate temperature, working pressure, and DC power. We fabricated thin and dense Pd-Cu alloy membranes by the micro-polishing of porous Ni support, an advanced Pd-Cu sputtered multi-deposition under the conditions of high substrate temperature / low working pressure / high DC power, and a followed by Cu-reflow heat-treatment. The result of a hydrogen permeation test indicated that the selectivity for $H_2/N_2$ was infinite because of the void-free and dense surface of the Pd alloy membranes, and the hydrogen permeability was 10.5 $ml{\cdot}cm^{-2}{\cdot}min^{-1}{\cdot}atm^{-1}$ for a 6 ${\mu}m$ membrane thickness.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.438-447
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• 2014

The amorphous and porous borosilicate without any cracks was obtained under the following condition : 0.01~ 0.10 mole ratio of trimethylborate (TMB)/ tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) and the temperature of $700{\sim}800^{\circ}C$. According to the BET and SEM measurements, borosilicate heat-treated in between 700 and $800^{\circ}C$ showed the surface area of $251.12{\sim}355.62m^2/g$, the pore diameter of 3.5~4.9 nm, and the particle size of 30~60 nm. According to the TGA measurements, the thermal stability of poly[1-(trimethylsilyl)propyne](PTMSP) membrane was enhanced by inserting borosilicate. SEM observation showed that the size of dispersed borosilicate in the composite membrane was $1{\mu}m$. The results showed that the permeability of $H_2$ and $N_2$ increased and the selectivity of $H_2/N_2$ decreased upon the addition of borosilicate into PTMSP membranes. Addition of borosilicate may possibly increase the free volume, cavity and porosity of membranes indicating that permeation occurred by molecular sieving, surface and Knudsen diffusion rather than solution diffusion of gases.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.50-57
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• 2024

In this experiment, Pd-Ag-Cu membrane was manufactured using electroless plating on an α-Al₂O₃ support. Pd, Ag and Cu were each coated on the surface of the support through electroless plating and heat treatment was performed for 18 h at 500℃ in H₂ in the middle of electroless plating to form Pd alloy. The surface of the Pd-Ag-Cu membrane was observed through Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and the thickness of the Pd membrane was measured to be 7.82 ㎛ and the thickness of the Pd-Ag-Cu membrane was measured to be 3.54 ㎛. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the formation of a Pd-Ag-Cu alloy with a composition of Pd-78wt%, Ag-8.81wt% and Cu-13.19wt%. The gas permeation experiment was conducted under the conditions of 350~450℃ and 1~4 bar in H₂ single gas and H₂/N₂ mixed gas. The maximum H₂ flux of the hydrogen separation membrane measured in H₂ single gas is 74.16 ml/cm²·min at 450℃ and 4 bar for the Pd membrane and 113.64 ml/cm²·min at 450℃ and 4 bar for the Pd-Ag-Cu membrane. In the case of the separation factor measured in H₂/N₂ mixed gas, separation factors of 2437 and 11032 were measured at 450℃ and 4 bar.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.24-29
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• 2017

A fluorinated polybenzimidazole (FPBI) was synthesized from 3,3-diaminobenzidine (DAB) of tetraamine, 2,2-bis(4-carboxyphenyl)hexafluoropropane of aromatic biscarboxylic acid, and 4,4-sulfonyldibenzoic acid of aromatic biscarboxylic acid in polyphosphoric acid (PPA). A FPBI was easily cast and made into clear films. The structure of condensation polymers and corresponding membranes were analyzed using GPC (gel permeation chromatography), $^1H$-NMR ($^1H$ nuclear magnetic resonance) and FT-IR (fourier transform infrared). TGA (thermogravimetric analysis) analysis showed that the prepared membranes were thermally stable, so that elevated temperature fuel cell operation would be possible. The proton conductivity of the FPBI membranes increased with increasing temperatures in the polymer. A FPBI membrane has a maximum ion conductivity of 45 mS/cm at $90^{\circ}C$ and 100% relative humidity.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.59 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2021

The PEM(Proton Exchange Membrane)water electrolysis uses the same PEM electrolyte membrane as the PEM fuel cell and proceeds by the same reaction but the opposite direction. The PEM fuel cell has many methods of degradation analysis since many studies have been conducted on the degradation and durability of the membrane and catalyst. We examined whether PEM fuel cell durability evaluation method can be applied to PEM electrolytic durability evaluation. During the PEM electrolytic degradation process, LSV(Linear sweep voltammetry), CV(Cyclic voltammetry), Impedance, SEM(Scanning Electron Microscope) and FT-IR(Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy) were analyzed and compared under the same conditions as the PEM fuel cell. As the PEM fuel cell, hydrogen passing through the membrane was oxidized at the Pt/C electrode, and the hydrogen permeation current density was measured to analyze the degree of degradation of the PEM membrane. Electrode degradation could be analyzed by measuring the electrode active area (ECSA) by CV under hydrogen/nitrogen flowing conditions. While supplying hydrogen and air to the Pt/C electrode and the IrO2 electrode, the impedance of each electrode was measured to evaluate the durability of the electrode and membrane.

• Clean Technology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.9-14
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• 2018

In this study, Material life cycle evaluation was performed to analyze the environmental impact characteristics of TiN-Zr membrane manufacturing process. The software of MLCA was Gabi. Through this, environmental impact assessment was performed for each process. Transition metal nitrides have been researched extensively because of their properties. Among these, TiN has the most attention. TiN is a ceramic materials which possess the good combination of physical and chemical properties, such as high melting point, high hardness, and relatively low specific gravity, high wear resistance and high corrosion resistance. With these properties, TiN plays an important role in functional materials for application in separation hydrogen from fossil fuel. Precursor TiN was synthesized by sol-gel method and zirconium was coated by ball mill method. The metallurgical, physical and thermodynamic characteristics of the membranes were analyzed by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDS), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Thermo Gravimetry/Differential Thermal Analysis (TG/DTA), Brunauer, Emmett, Teller (BET) and Gas Chromatograph System (GP). As a result of characterization and normalization, environmental impacts were 94% in MAETP (Marine Aquatic Ecotoxicity), 2% FAETP (Freshwater Aquatic Ecotoxicity), 2% HTP (Human Toxicity Potential). TiN fabrication process appears to have a direct or indirect impact on the human body. It is believed that the greatest impact that HTP can have on human is the carcinogenic properties. This shows that electricity use has a great influence on ecosystem impact. TiN-Zr was analyzed in Eco-Indicator '99 (EI99) and CML 2001 methodology.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.263-269
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• 1999

For effective $CO_2$ separation using pore size controlled membrane, silica was deposited in the mesopores of a $\gamma$-alumina film by chemical vapor deposition of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and phenyl-substituted ethoxysilanes at 773-873K. The membranes prepared with phenyl-substituted ethoxysilanes were calcined to remove the phenyl group and control the pore size. The gas permaselectivity of prepared membranes was evaluated by using $H_2$, $CO_2$ $N_2$, $CH_2$ and $C_3H_8$ single component and a mixture of $CO_2$ and $N_2$. The membranes produced using TEOS contained micropores having permselectivity only to hydrogen, but the phenyl-subsitituted ethoxysilane derived membranes possessed micorpores which are recognizable molecules of $CO_2$, $N_2$ and $CH_4$. In the diphenyl-diethoxysilane-derived membrane, the $CO_2$ permeance and selectivity of $CO_2$/$CH_4$ were $10^{-6} m^3(STP) \cdot m^{-2} \cdot s^{-1} \cdot kPa^{-1}$ and 11, respectively. Therefore, the use of phenyl-substituted ethoxysilane was effective in controlling micropore size for $CO_2$ separation.