A study of the permeability and separation of carbon dioxide and hydrogen by gaseous diffusion employing barriers of polystyrene

The purpose of this investigation was to study the permeability and separation of carbon dioxide and hydrogen by gaseous diffusion employing barriers of polystyrene. The offset of temperature and barrier thickness on the permeability and separation of carbon dioxide and hydrogen wore Investigated for barriers of one, three, and five-mil thicknesses and for temperatures of 26, 35, 45, and 50 degrees centigrade. With an increase in barrier thickness of one to five- mils, the permeability of carbon dioxide decreased to one-fourth of its value at the one-mil thickness. The hydrogen permeability decreased to approximately two- thirds of its value at the one-mil thickness rhea the barrier thickness increased from one to five-mils. An increase in temperature from 26 to 50 degrees centigrade resulted in an increase In permeability of hydrogen of three and one-half per cent. The same temperature increase caused the permeability of carbon dioxide to increase by eight and one-half per cent. It was observed that the degree of separation of a fifty mole percent mixture of carbon dioxide and hydrogen was increased 22 per cent with an increase in barrier thickness of one to five-mils --Abstract, page ii