Elucidating the Molecular Mechanisms by which Porous Polymer Networks Affect Structure, Aging Propensity, and Selectivity of Microporous Glassy Polymer Membranes using a Multiscale Approach

Microporous glassy polymer membranes suffer from physical aging, which adversely affects their performance in the short time frame. We show that the aging propensity of a model microporous polymer, poly(1-trimethylsilyl-1-propyne) (PTMSP), can be effectively mitigated by blending with as little as 5 wt % porous polymer network (PPN) composed of triptycene and isatin. The aging behavior of these materials was monitored via N2 pure gas permeability measurements over the course of 3 weeks, showing a 14% decline in PTMSP blended with 5 wt % PPN vs a 41% decline in neat PTMSP. Noteworthy, PPNs are 2 orders of magnitude cheaper than the porous aromatic frameworks previously used to control PTMSP aging. A variety of experimental and computational techniques, such as Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy (PALS), free volume measurements, cross-polarization/magic angle spinning (CP/MAS) 13C NMR, transport measurements and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were used to uncover the molecular mechanisms leading to enhanced aging resistance. We show that partial PTMSP chain adsorption into the PPN porosity reduces the PTMSP local segmental mobility, leading to improved aging resistance. Permeability coefficients were broken into their elementary sorption and diffusion contributions, to elucidate the mechanism by which the reduced PTMSP local segmental mobility affects selectivity in gas separation applications. Finally, we demonstrate that in these systems, where both chemical and physical interactions take place, transport coefficients must be corrected for thermodynamic nonidealities to avoid erroneous interpretation of the results.