Industrial gas separation processes account for an estimated 15 percent of global energy consumption. Researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), together with academic collaborators in China and France, have now developed a new membrane technology that could help reduce that burden while overcoming a longstanding obstacle that has prevented advanced membrane materials from being manufactured at industrial scale.  

Published in  Nature, the research focuses on metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), highly porous materials capable of separating molecules with exceptional precision. While MOFs have long been viewed as promising alternatives to energy-intensive industrial separation processes, their performance has been difficult to maintain when moving from laboratory demonstrations to large-scale manufacturing.  

The team developed a new membrane architecture that allows membranes to contain more than 90 percent MOF material while remaining flexible, durable, and compatible with existing manufacturing methods. Traditional membranes require polymers to hold materials together, but adding too much polymer can reduce performance. The researchers overcame this challenge using a small molecular anchor that links MOF nanosheets with surrounding polymer chains, allowing the membrane to function as a single integrated structure.  

As a demonstration of industrial relevance, the team successfully produced continuous membrane rolls measuring 20 meters in length using roll-to-roll manufacturing equipment at facilities in China, showing that the technology can be manufactured using processes already familiar to industry.  

“Industrial separations consume enormous amounts of energy every day,” said Professor Mohamed Eddaoudi, professor of Chemical Science at KAUST and a corresponding author of the study.