Credit: Oak Ridge National Laboratory/Dept. of Energy
Scientists synthesized porous hollow carbon spheres (HCS, shown in pink), incorporated them in a triblock copolymer (PS-PEB-PS, two blocks of polystyrene flanking a block of poly[ethylene-ran-butylene]) matrix and spin cast the mixture to create a robust membrane with improved permeability and selectivity for smaller carbon dioxide molecules (red and white) compared to larger nitrogen molecules (blue).