Permeation of Ternary Mixture Containing HS, CO and CH in Aquivion Perfluorosulfonic Acid (PFSA) Ionomer Membranes.

Aquivion E87-12S Perfluorosulfonated acid ionomer material (PFSA) has been studied as a membrane technology for natural gas sweetening from CO, HS due to its interesting chemical and mechanical stability and good separation performance for polar compounds in humid environments. In the present work, permeation of the HS/CO/CH ternary mixture in this short-side PFSA chain was investigated at pressures up to 10 bar, temperatures up to 50 °C, and in a range of relative humidity (RH) from 20% to 90%. The results obtained confirm the strong dependence of Aquivion on water activity and temperature, and its ability to separate gases based on their water solubility without substantial differences between pure and mixed gas experiments.