CO₂ gas retention by poly(DVB)HIPE porous foam filled with acid-treated organo-modified bentonite

Abstract

Poly(Divinylbenzene)HIPE was successfully prepared by varying the composition of three surfactants —SPAN80, DDBSS, and CTAB— in a series of five mixed ratios —4.3:0.4:0.3, 6.3:0.4:03, 7.8:0.4:03, 9.3:0.4:03, and 11.3:0.4:03, respectively— using acid-treated organo-modified bentonite (0 and 10 % wt) as inorganic reinforcement to elevate the surface area and mechanical properties of the poly(DVB)HIPE for use as an adsorbent for CO2 gas adsorption. The obtained polyHIPEs were characterized for phase morphology, surface area, thermal properties, and mechanical properties by using SEM, BET, TG/DTA, and a LLOYD universal testing machine, respectively. The surface area and mechanical properties of the resulting materials were found to be dependedent on the composition of the mixed surfactant and the acid- treated organo-modified bentonite. The CO2 gas retention of both polyHIPE filled with acid-treated organo-modified clay and pure polyHIPE foam were also studied using GC. It was found that the suitable amount of % total surfactant for CO2 gas retention was 7% for pure polyHIPE and 10% for polyHIPE filled with acid-treated organo-modified clay, respectively. With this two mixed surfactants, surface areas of 541 m2/g (for the pure PolyHIPE) and 638 m2/g (for the filled PolyHIPE) were obtained, along with CO2 retentions of 13.98 mmol/g and 13.89 mmol/g, respectively.