SK Innovation and its subsidiary SK IE Technology (SKIET) have announced the development of next-generation membrane technology that significantly reduces costs while enhancing performance for carbon capture applications. This breakthrough was achieved through collaborative research with a team led by Professor Jong-hak Kim from the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Yonsei University.
The joint research has been published in the esteemed Journal of Membrane Science, known for featuring pioneering work in chemical engineering. The paper, titled “Low-cost, all-organic, hydrogen-bonded thin-film composite membranes for CO₂ capture: Experiments and molecular dynamic simulation,” introduces an innovative approach that utilizes exclusively organic materials in membrane manufacturing.
While recent studies have focused on incorporating inorganic materials to improve gas permeability, the team succeeded in creating a highly permeable membrane by applying a precisely engineered thin-film coating approximately 200 nanometers thick—about 1/500th the thickness of a human hair—and integrating a specially developed organic additive.
The resulting carbon capture membrane is not only highly efficient but also cost-effective to produce, making it suitable for mass production and commercial use. SK Innovation plans to accelerate the development of this technology in collaboration with SKIET, leveraging SKIET’s global competitiveness and mass production capabilities in lithium-ion battery separators (LiBS). These organic-based carbon capture membranes are expected to be deployed in high-carbon-emission industries such as power generation, steel, and cement.
Additionally, SK Innovation and SKIET have been actively working to lead the carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) market. Since May of last year, they have collaborated with Airrane, a specialist in gas separation membranes, and in October of last year, they signed a memorandum of understanding with LOTTE Chemical to enhance competitiveness in the carbon capture sector.
Lee Sung-jun, Head of SK Innovation’s Institute of Environmental Science & Technology, commented, “This achievement exemplifies SK Innovation’s accumulated expertise in energy and chemical R&D, combined with dedicated efforts from external research organizations. SK Innovation remains committed to advancing R&D initiatives to commercialize carbon capture membranes.”
Source: SK Innovation News
