A highly hydrophilic A-type zeolite membrane was prepared by a hydrothermal synthesis on
the outer surface of a porous α-alumina tube. Increasing and decreasing the permeation
temperature between 308 and 473 K over 40 cycles in a period of 4 months did not damage the
membrane. Permeation tests with a variety of permeates showed that the membrane possessed
two types of pores: zeolitic pores of 0.4−0.43 nm diameter and nonzeolitic pores. Molecules
larger than C2H6 were not able to permeate through the zeolitic pores. The separation factors
of the membrane were dependent on molecular size, affinity to the pore walls, and hydrophobicity
of the permeating molecules. The combination of permeants also affected the permeation rates.
H2O molecules could be concentrated in the zeolitic and nonzeolitic pores, thus reducing the
permeation of the hydrophobic permeants. The H2O/H2 separation factor was larger than 160
at permeation temperatures of 303−473 K.
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