Carbon membrane for fluid separation, fluid separation membrane module, and method for producing carbon membrane for fluid separation

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10159943-B2
Application number	US-201515328363-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 24, 2015
Priority date	Jul 24, 2014
Publication date	Dec 25, 2018
Grant date	Dec 25, 2018

Abstract

The present invention provides a carbon membrane for fluid separation with which a high-pressure fluid can be separated and purified and which has excellent pressure resistance and is less apt to be damaged. The present invention relates to a carbon membrane for fluid separation, including: a core layer which has a co-continuous porous structure; and a skin layer which has substantially no co-continuous porous structure and is formed around the core layer.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A carbon membrane for fluid separation, comprising: a core layer which has a co-continuous porous structure; and a skin layer which has substantially no co-continuous porous structure and is formed around the core layer, wherein the co-continuous porous structure of the core layer has a structural period of 0.002 to 10 μm.

2. The carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 1 , wherein a central part of the core layer has an average porosity of 10 to 80%.

3. The carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 1 , which is a core/sheath fiber comprising a core part as the core layer and a sheath part as the skin layer.

4. The carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 3 , which is a fiber having a round cross-section.

5. A hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation comprising: a core layer which has a co-continuous porous structure; a skin layer which has substantially no co-continuous porous structure and is formed around the core layer; and a hollow part formed inside the core layer, wherein the co-continuous porous structure of the core layer has a structural period of 0.002 to 10 μm.

6. The hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 5 , wherein an area ratio A/B of a cross-sectional area A of the hollow part to a cross-sectional area B of the hollow-fiber carbon membrane is 0.001 to 0.7.

7. The hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 5 , wherein the core layer has a structural period of 0.05 to 3 μm.

8. The hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 5 , wherein pores in the co-continuous porous structure of the core layer have an average diameter of 30 to 1,500 nm.

9. The hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 5 , wherein the skin layer has a thickness of 5 μm or less.

10. A fluid separation membrane module produced by fabricating a plurality of membranes into a module, each of the membranes being either the carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 3 .

11. A fluid separation membrane module produced by fabricating a plurality of membranes into a module, each of the membranes being the carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 4 .

12. A fluid separation membrane module produced by fabricating a plurality of membranes into a module, each of the membranes being the hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 5 .

13. A fluid separation membrane module produced by fabricating a plurality of membranes into a module, each of the membranes being the hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 6 .

14. A fluid separation membrane module produced by fabricating a plurality of membranes into a module, each of the membranes being the hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 7 .

15. A fluid separation membrane module produced by fabricating a plurality of membranes into a module, each of the membranes being the hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 8 .

16. A fluid separation membrane module produced by fabricating a plurality of membranes into a module, each of the membranes being the hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation according to claim 9 .

17. A process for producing a carbon membrane for fluid separation, the process comprising:
step 1: a step in which 10 to 90% by weight of a carbonizable resin and 90 to 10% by weight of an eliminable resin are brought into a compatibly mixed state to obtain a resin mixture;
step 2: a step in which the resin mixture obtained in the step 1 is caused to undergo phase separation to form a co-continuous phase separation structure and the separated phases are fixed to obtain a precursor for the carbon membrane for fluid separation; and
step 3: a step in which the precursor for the carbon membrane for fluid separation obtained in the step 2 is carbonized by pyrolysis.

18. A process for producing a hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation, the process comprising:
step 1: a step in which 10 to 90% by weight of a carbonizable resin and 90 to 10% by weight of an eliminable resin are brought into a compatibly mixed state to obtain a resin mixture;
step 2: a step in which the resin mixture that has been brought into the compatibly mixed state in the step 1 is spun into a hollow fiber and caused to undergo phase separation to form a co continuous phase separation structure to obtain a precursor for the hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation; and
step 3: a step in which the precursor for the hollow-fiber carbon membrane for fluid separation obtained in the step 2 is carbonized by pyrolysis.

Assignees

• Toray Industries

Inventors

• Takeuchi Kosaku
• Tanaka Kentaro
• Mihara Takaaki
• Horiguchi Tomoyuki

Classifications

• B32B3/26

  characterised by a particular shape of the outline of the cross-section of a continuous layer; characterised by a layer with cavities or internal voids {(foam layer B32B5/18; layer of synthetic resin characterised by fillers that create voids or cavities B32B27/205); characterised by an apertured layer} · CPC title

• C01B32/05

  Preparation or purification of carbon not covered by groups C01B32/15, C01B32/20, C01B32/25, C01B32/30 · CPC title

• B01D53/22

  by diffusion (manufacturing semi-permeable membranes B01D67/00; form, structure or properties of semi-permeable membranes B01D69/00; material for semi-permeable membranes B01D71/00) · CPC title

• B01D2323/18

  Pore-control agents or pore formers · CPC title

• D01D5/24

  with a hollow structure; Spinnerette packs therefor (D01D5/38 takes precedence; producing tubes of plastic material B29D; addition of agents forming hollow filaments D01F1/08) · CPC title