Zachary P. Smith

Enhanced ethylene separation and plasticization resistance in polymer membranes incorporating metal–organic framework nanocrystals

The implementation of membrane-based separations in the petrochemical industry has the potential to reduce energy consumption significantly relative to conventional separation processes. Achieving this goal, however, requires the development of new membrane materials with greater selectivity, permeability and stability than available at present. Here, we report composite materials consisting of nanocrystals of metal-organic frameworks dispersed within a high-performance polyimide, which can exhibit enhanced selectivity for ethylene over ethane, greater ethylene permeability and improved membrane stability. Our results suggest that framework-polymer interactions reduce chain mobility of the polymer while simultaneously boosting membrane separation performance. The increased stability, or plasticization resistance, is expected to improve membrane utility under real process conditions for petrochemical separations and natural gas purification. Furthermore, this approach can be broadly applied to numerous polymers that encounter aggressive environments, potentially making gas separations possible that were previously inaccessible to membranes.

Synthesis and characterization of triptycene-based polyimides with tunable high fractional free volume for gas separation membranes

Robust polymer membranes that are highly permeable and selective are desired for energy efficient gas separation processes. In this study, a series of rigid, bulky triptycene-based diamine monomers were designed, synthesized, and subsequently incorporated into the backbone of polyimides via polycondensation with 2,2′-bis(3,4-dicarboxyphenyl)hexafluoropropane dianhydride (6FDA) to obtain a series of polyimide membranes with high fractional free volume. These triptycene-containing polyimides with systematic variations in their chemical structure demonstrate the viability of the ‘tunable’ fractional free volume by introducing various substituents onto the polymer backbone. All the polyimides synthesized exhibited film-forming high molecular weight, high solubility, and excellent thermal properties, with glass transition temperatures ranging from 280 °C to 300 °C and thermal stability up to 500 °C. Compared to other classes of glassy polymers, these triptycene-polyimides had high combinations of permeability and selectivity, suggesting that a favorable free volume size distribution in these triptycene polyimides was induced by the unique chain packing mechanism of triptycene units. The correlation between gas transport properties and the polymer chemical structure was also investigated. Altering the size of the substituents neighboring the triptycene units provides greater opportunity to fine-tune the fractional free volume and free volume size distribution in the polymer, which in turn can change the transport properties effectively to meet various separation needs. It is expected that additional design modifications made by exploiting the chemistry versatility of the triptycene moiety and by selectively adding other components may improve these membranes to break the gas permeability–selectivity trade-off barrier.

Synthesis and characterization of Thermally Rearranged (TR) polymers: influence of ortho-positioned functional groups of polyimide precursors on TR process and gas transport properties

Aromatic polyimides bearing various ortho-functional groups (i.e., acetate group and pivalic acetate group) were prepared via acetylation of a poly(hydroxyimide) containing ortho-positioned hydroxy groups using acetic anhydride or pivalic anhydride. The completeness of acetylation was confirmed by 1H NMR and FTIR. Chemically derivatized polyimides were used as precursors for an imide-to-benzoxazole thermal rearrangement (TR) process. The influence of various ortho-functionalities on the TR process and gas transport properties of the resulting TR polymers was studied. Differing from the –OH groups in a poly(hydroxyimide), the acetate groups of acetylated polyimide precursors degrade at elevated temperatures, and the degradation process interplays with imide-to-benzoxazole conversion. The acidic degradation product, as detected by 1H NMR, is suspected to have some catalytic effect on the TR process, which along with the protecting function of the acetate groups, resulted in a lower onset TR conversion temperature, the ability to conduct the TR process in air, and a higher TR conversion level. Gas permeation properties greatly depend on the ortho-functionality of polyimide precursors as well. The precursor films containing larger functional groups are much more permeable with comparable gas selectivities. Similarly, the resulting TR polymers formed from polyimides with larger leaving groups also showed much higher gas permeabilities despite similar degrees of TR conversion. The incorporation of bulkier functional groups in the TR precursors provides an effective way to significantly improve the gas transport performance, particularly the gas permeabilities of both the polyimide precursors and the resulting TR polymers.

Synthesis and characterization of thermally rearranged (TR) polymers: effect of glass transition temperature of aromatic poly(hydroxyimide) precursors on TR process and gas permeation properties

Soluble aromatic polyimides containing ortho-positioned hydroxy groups were synthesized as precursors for thermal rearrangement (TR) to polybenzoxazoles (PBOs). Fully imidized polyimides with high-molecular-weights were afforded via a ‘one-pot’ solution imidization technique (i.e., ester-acid method). The poly(hydroxyimide)s were designed to vary in their glass transition temperatures (Tg) by carefully selecting dianhydride–bisaminophenol combinations to introduce various levels of chain rigidity. TR conversion (imide-to-benzoxazole conversion) occurred in solid-state films only under inert atmosphere and over a temperature range of 300–450 °C, depending on the chemical structure (chain rigidity) of precursors. The effect of the precursor Tg on TR conversion was studied using TGA, DSC, FTIR and gel fraction measurements. The TR conversion temperature of imide-to-benzoxazole rearrangement strongly depended on the precursor Tg. Thus, for example, the feasible TR temperature was successfully reduced by ∼100 °C by lowering the precursor Tg by using a bisphenol A type dianhydride in the polymer synthesis. Gas permeation properties of representative TR systems are also reported. The TR process significantly increased gas permeabilities while maintaining good selectivities. By correlating the TR conversion degree with gas transport properties, there appears to be an optimal TR conversion degree that can maximize both gas permeability and selectivity. Systematic studies on TR polymers derived from low Tg precursors were suggested to further explore this correlation.

Growth of human pancreatic cancer is inhibited by down-regulation of gastrin gene expression.

Objectives: This study evaluated the effects of gastrin messenger RNA (mRNA) down-regulation on growth of human pancreatic cancer. Methods: Gastrin expression was examined in human pancreatic cancer cell lines by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, and peptide expression was assessed by immunocytochemistry. Gastrin was down-regulated using either stable transfection of an antisense gastrin cDNA or 1 of 3 shRNA (short hairpin RNA) constructs. Tumor formation was evaluated after either subcutaneous or orthotopic injections into nude mice. The effect of nanoliposomes loaded with gastrin siRNA (small interfering RNA) was tested in mice bearing pancreatic tumors. Results: Stable transfection of gastrin antisense or shRNAs into BxPC-3 cells resulted in clones with more than 90% reduction in gastrin mRNA. Tumor growth rate and incidence of metastases in both wild-type and transfected pancreatic cancer cells were directly proportional to the degrees of gastrin mRNA expression. Immunofluorescence analysis confirmed that gastrin peptide levels were decreased in antisense and shRNA tumors. Gastrin knockdown clones had lower Ki-67 and increased cleaved caspase-3 staining, consistent with known effects of gastrin on proliferation and apoptosis. Tumors in mice treated with gastrin siRNA were smaller than controls. Conclusions: These results suggest that RNAi targeting of gastrin could serve as an effective treatment for pancreatic cancer.

Engineered Transport in Microporous Materials and Membranes for Clean Energy Technologies

Many forward-looking clean-energy technologies hinge on the development of scalable and efficient membrane-based separations. Ongoing investment in the basic research of microporous materials is beginning to pay dividends in membrane technology maturation. Specifically, improvements in membrane selectivity, permeability, and durability are being leveraged for more efficient carbon capture, desalination, and energy storage, and the market adoption of membranes in those areas appears to be on the horizon. Herein, an overview of the microporous materials chemistry driving advanced membrane development, the clean-energy separations employing them, and the theoretical underpinnings tying membrane performance to membrane structure across multiple length scales is provided. The interplay of pore architecture and chemistry for a given set of analytes emerges as a critical design consideration dictating mass transport outcomes. Opportunities and outstanding challenges in the field are also discussed, including high-flux 2D molecular-sieving membranes, phase-change adsorbents as performance-enhancing components in composite membranes, and the need for quantitative metrologies for understanding mass transport in heterophasic materials and in micropores with unusual chemical interactions with analytes of interest.