A high selectivity and high CO.sub.2 plasticization resistant polymer comprises a plurality of repeating units of formula (I) for gas separation applications. The polymer may be synthesized from a superacid catalyzed poly(hydroalkylation) reaction.

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Membranes made from the polymer and gas separation processes using the membranes made from the polymer are also described.

The present invention provides a composite body having, on a porous substrate and in the interstices of the substrate that includes fibers, preferably of an electrically nonconductive material, a porous layer (1) composed of oxide particles bonded to one another and partly to the substrate that include at least one oxide selected from oxides of the elements Al, Zr, Ti and Si, preferably selected from Al.sub.2O.sub.3, ZrO.sub.2, TiO.sub.2 and SiO.sub.2, and having, at least on one side, a further porous layer (2) including oxide particles bonded to one another and partly to layer (1) that include at least one oxide selected from oxides of the elements Al, Zr, Ti and Si, preferably selected from Al.sub.2O.sub.3, ZrO.sub.2, TiO.sub.2 and SiO.sub.2, where the oxide particles present in layer (1) have a greater median particle size than the oxide particles present in layer (2), which is characterized in that the median particle size (d.sub.50) of the oxide particles in layer (1) is from 0.5 to 4 μm and the median particle size (d.sub.50) of the oxide particles in layer (2) is from 0.015 to 0.15 μm, preferably 0.04 to 0.06 μm, a process for producing corresponding composite bodies and for the use thereof, especially in gas separation.

Porous compositions such as flexible polymers with side chain porosity are generally provided. In some embodiments, the composition comprises a flexible polymer backbone and a plurality of rigid side chains. In some embodiments, the rigid side chains form pores. In some embodiments, the rigid side chains may comprise two or more [2.2.2] bicyclic cores (e.g., formed by a ring opening metathesis polymerization. The compounds and methods described herein may be useful in various applications including, for example, gas separation.

The invention includes a gas processing system for transforming a hydrocarbon-containing inflow gas into outflow gas products, where the system includes a gas delivery subsystem, a plasma reaction chamber, and a microwave subsystem, with the gas delivery subsystem in fluid communication with the plasma reaction chamber, so that the gas delivery subsystem directs the hydrocarbon-containing inflow gas into the plasma reaction chamber, and the microwave subsystem directs microwave energy into the plasma reaction chamber to energize the hydrocarbon-containing inflow gas, thereby forming a plasma in the plasma reaction chamber, which plasma effects the transformation of a hydrocarbon in the hydrocarbon-containing inflow gas into the outflow gas products, which comprise acetylene and hydrogen. The invention also includes methods for the use of the gas processing system.

Methods and systems to decarbonize natural gas using sulfur to produce hydrogen and polymers are provided. Sulfur can be introduced in elemental form or as hydrogen sulfide, as may be desired. Decarbonization of natural gas involves introducing natural gas and H.sub.2S to a first reactor to produce first reactor products including CS.sub.2 and H.sub.2. The CS.sub.2 can subsequently be polymerized and the H.sub.2 recovered in a purified form with little or no carbon emissions.

The invention includes a gas processing system for transforming a hydrocarbon-containing inflow gas into outflow gas products, where the system includes a gas delivery subsystem, a plasma reaction chamber, and a microwave subsystem, with the gas delivery subsystem in fluid communication with the plasma reaction chamber, so that the gas delivery subsystem directs the hydrocarbon-containing inflow gas into the plasma reaction chamber, and the microwave subsystem directs microwave energy into the plasma reaction chamber to energize the hydrocarbon-containing inflow gas, thereby forming a plasma in the plasma reaction chamber, which plasma effects the transformation of a hydrocarbon in the hydrocarbon-containing inflow gas into the outflow gas products, which comprise acetylene and hydrogen. The invention also includes methods for the use of this gas processing system.

A membrane modification method for improving liquid membrane separation of carbon dioxide (CO.sub.2) includes grafting an organic substance containing an amine group on a porous membrane material, and loading water into pore channels of the porous membrane material to prepare a supported liquid membrane for a gas mixture separation experiment of CO.sub.2. In the method, the amine group is introduced through chemical grafting to make the water being alkaline when used as membrane liquid. Compared with an alkaline solution as the membrane liquid, the method can avoid the loss of active alkaline substances and increase the permeation flux of CO.sub.2.

A fuel oxidation system including an inlet in fluid communication with an interior of a sealed container, and the sealed container is holding permeated gas released from a pressure vessel within the sealed container. Another inlet is in fluid communication with an environment surrounding the sealed container, and the environment includes oxygen gas (O.sub.2). An oxidation module is in fluid communication with the inlet and the other inlet, and the oxidation module is combining the permeated gas received by the inlet with the oxygen gas (O.sub.2) received by the other inlet to form a preferred substance.

A membrane is described for purifying or separating hydrogen from a multi-component gas stream such as syngas. This membrane uses a molecular pre-treatment, a transition metal, fluorine containing polymer, carbon fibers and carbon matrix sintered on a supportive screen. The membrane may be a bilayer membrane comprised of a layer containing high surface area carbon and another layer containing lower surface area carbon. Methods for purifying hydrogen are also described.

A carbon dioxide conversion system for an environment includes a first gas-liquid contactor-separator downstream of the environment; an electrochemical conversion cell downstream of the first gas-liquid contactor-separator; and a cleaned ionic liquid storage intermediate the first gas-liquid contactor-separator and the electrochemical conversion cell.