Quick fabrication of continuous and compact silicalite-1 membrane on stainless steel net

A new method for quick fabrication of continuous and compact silicalite-1(Si-MFI) membrane on stainless steel net was developed. The method consists of pre-treatment of substrate of stainless steel net with silica solution containing polyethylene oxide(PEO) polymer and a secondary growth process. The continuous and compact Si-MFI membranes were obtained within 12 h. The membrane was further characterized by scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and X-ray diffraction(XRD) analyses. SEM analyses show that the membrane is continuous and highly compact. XRD analyses suggest that the micro-crystals embedded in the membrane are well crystallized. The permeance and separation performance of the Si-MFI membrane were exa-mined with a gas-separation setup combining a gas chromatography. The results show that the Si-MFI membrane has an excellent permeance and separation performance for CO ₂ and N ₂.