Long-term separation performance of phthalate polymer/silver salt complex membranes for olefin/paraffin separation

The membrane performance and long-term stability have been investigated for two kinds of polymer/silver salt complex membranes containing phthalate groups. The PEP/ AgBF4 membranes containing only phthalates exhibited much better long-term stability than PTDP/AgBF4 membranes having aliphatic ester, ether and hydroxyl groups beside phthalates. Therefore, it is concluded that the critical parameter in determining the long-term separation performance in silver polymer electrolyte membranes is the exclusive presence of phthalate groups.