Polyimide polymer membranes posses' exceptional physical -chemical properties including excellent stability at relatively high temperatures (~ 400°C), superior mechanical properties, and are highly resistant to various chemicals. Palladium is well known for its unique physicalchemical interactions with hydrogen. Interest in metal polymer composites can be attributed to the drive to produce a material with the savings in weight, advantages of flexibility, and ease of use in diverse configurations afforded by polymers, and at the same time incorporating the physical -chemical attributes of the metal of interest. The combination of polyimide and palladium may produce a nanocomposite with the thermal stability and flexibility of polyimide and the hydrogen separation properties of palladium.Commercial polyimide membranes (Kapton, Dupont) were treated with solution of NaOH and then thin films of palladium metal were deposited using an electroless deposition method. The samples were thoroughly characterized using FTIR, XRD, TEM and adhesive characteristics were determined using a 90 peel test. Variations in the pre-treatment regimes were found to affect the deposition of palladium in terms of the extent of penetration into the polymer matrix. Adherence of Pd to polyimide was demonstrated but will need improvement for application as an industrially viable composite hydrogen separation membrane.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.