PFI: Polymeric Membranes for Energy and the Environment

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This Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) project--a Type III (A:C) partnership between Virginia Tech University (VT) an NSF PFI graduated grantee(0650277), and two institutions new to the PFI Program (defined as ones that have never been PFI grantees), University of South Carolina Upstate (USCU) (Spartansburg, SC) and St. Paul's College (Lawrenceville, VA)--is driven by the potential for membrane separations to dramatically improve the global availability of clean water and clean natural gas. The knowledge gained in the course of the project will be transferred to large and small companies through broad-based national and international workshops and collaborations. Current reverse osmosis (RO) systems utilize submicron-thick aromatic polyamide membranes which are lightly crosslinked. They lack chemical resistance to chlorine disinfectants. This project is developing amphiphilic, ductile, oxidatively and hydrolytically stable polymeric membranes from poly(arylene ether) ion-containing systems which provide good salt rejection and water flux. The new membranes have greatly enhanced stability against disinfecting chlorinated compounds and resistance to fouling. The materials are amenable to scale-up (by one of the partners, Akron Polymer Systems) and processing into a variety of useful products (by Dow Water Solutions) including asymmetric films, thin supported membranes and asymmetric hollow fibers. Ultrahigh performance natural gas separation membranes based on polyamides and polybenzoxazoles have been discovered in conjunction with Korean and Australian colleagues. Multidisciplinary research at VT/UT, partnering with ConocoPhillips, will accelerate successful development of practical systems.Outcomes will include a fundamental body of knowledge regarding structures, materials and property relations for water and natural gas purification membranes. The project provides an important opportunity for students to be educated as part of a multi-disciplinary global research team. A major feature of the project will be undergraduate/graduate/faculty exchanges from the participating U.S. academic institutions (Virginia Tech, University of Texas at Austin, University of South Carolina Upstate, and St. Paul's College that will provide talented diverse scientists and engineers to the industrial partners. Internships will broaden students' perspectives well beyond their research and instill in them the value of team approaches to problem-solving that are so critical to progress in interdisciplinary fields. Partners at the inception of the project are Academic Institutions: Virginia Tech (lead institution), University of Texas at Austin, University of South Carolina Upstate, St. Paul's College, and Hanyang University (Seoul, Korea); Private Sector Organizations: Akron Polymer Systems, Dow Water Solutions, ConocoPhillips, and Polymer Solutions; and Government Laboratories: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) (Clayton, Victoria, Australia).