Structures and Gas Separation Properties of Silicone-Containing Polyimides

In order to obtain polymer materials suitable for thermally stable gas separation membranes, silicone-containing polyimides (SPIs) with various chemical structures and silicone contents were prepared, and the relationship between the chemical structures and the gas separation properties was studied. The permeability of gases such as oxygen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide and methane increased with the silicone content, while the permselectivity decreased. Therefore the permeability and the permselectivity were found to be controlled by the silicone content as well as the chemical structure of the SPIs.