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Abstract
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Polyvinylideneflouride (PVDF) hollow fiber mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) were fabricated through
wet phase inversion method using general MMT and Cloisite 15A as inorganic fillers. The effect of clay
filler loadings (1, 3 and 5 wt% of polymer), their particle size and hydrophobicity on the membrane morphology,
structure and performance in gas–liquid contacting process were investigated. The fabricated
MMMs were characterized by scanning electron microscopic (SEM), gas permeation test, hydrophobicity,
wetting resistance and CO2 absorption test. As expected, MMMs showed asymmetrical structure, differing
in finger-like portion, porosity and pore size. The fabricated MMMs with higher finger-like area and
surface porosity showed higher permeance than plain membrane. Furthermore, the wetting resistance in
terms of surface hydrophobicity and liquid entry pressure of water increased with loading. From the
point of view of physical CO2 absorption, the membranes incorporated with small particle size filler (general
MMT-filled PVDF membranes) exhibited higher absorption fluxes than those embedded with large
particle size fillers. The highest absorption flux for membrane containing 1 wt% general MMT is
1.0 103 mol m2 s1 at the flow rate of 3.1 m s1. That flux was approximately 54% and 82% higher
than the flux of MMMs with embedded Cloisite 15A of the same loading and plain PVDF membrane,
respectively. The obtained flux of synthesized membrane was superior compared to several in-house
made and commercial membranes.
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