>Magister Scientiae - MSc / Membrane separation processes have been widely applied in the treatment of wastewater with polysulfone (PSF) polymer membrane being the most frequently used in ultrafiltration of wastewater due to its chemical and structural stability and mechanical robustness. The disadvantage to these membranes is their hydrophobicity which leads to membrane fouling caused by organic pollutants in water. Many studies have been conducted to increase the hydrophilic properties of the polysulfone membrane surface. Most recently metal oxide nanoparticles have been introduced to the polymer matrix in order to reduce membrane fouling and increase its hydrophilicity with measurable success. Natural organic matters are the one of the major fouling agents during ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis and microfiltration. Two organic acids (Tannic Acid and Alginic Acid) were selected to test the fouling behaviour of nanometallic synthesised polysulfone membranes. For this study, polysulfone casting suspension was prepared by dissolving polysulfone beads in N,N-dimethly acetamide. Three metallic nanoparticles of Silver, Cobalt and Nickel were selected to improve the hydrophilicity of the polysulfone membrane. The metal nanoparticles were prepared using the chemical reduction method. Cobalt nanoparticles were synthesized by dissolving the cobalt chloride salt in deionized water and reduced with sodium borohydride at room temperature. The nickel chloride salt was dissolved in ethanol and reduced with sodium borohydride under magnetic stirrer. Silver nanoparticles were prepared by dissolving the silver nitrate in deionised water and heated to boil, the sodium citrate was added to reduced the silver nitrate. These nanoparticles were then integrated into the polysulfone polymer matrix to form the metal nanoparticle polysulfone nanocomposites. This study focused on four prepared polysulfone nanocomposite membrane; 1 unmodified polysulfone (PSF), 2 polysulfone modified with cobalt nanoparticles (PSF/Co), 3 polysulfone modified with nickel nanoparticles (PSF/Ni) and 4 polysulfone modified with silver nanoparticles (PSF/Ag).

La part des technologies membranaires en tant que technique de séparation a rapidement augmenté au cours de ces dernières années grâce à leur large gamme d'applications. Le marché en pleine expansion nécessite des matériaux polymères avancés qui montrent une résistance accrue vis-à-vis du gonflement et de la plastification en séparation de gaz (GS) ou vis-à-vis de solvants forts et des conditions de pH extrême en nanofiltration en milieu organique (SRNF). Aujourd'hui, la réticulation apparait comme une technologie prometteuse pour répondre à ces nouveaux besoins. La réticulation chimique est l'une des techniques les plus couramment utilisées et est basée sur une réaction chimique entre un polymère (par exemple un polyimide) et un réticulant (par exemple une diamine ou un diol). Cependant pour des polymères, tels que les polysulfones (PSU), qui ne contiennent pas de groupes fonctionnels chimiquement réactifs dans leur squelette, cette technique n'est pas viable. Enfin la réticulation chimique implique plusieurs étapes de traitement et induit des flux de déchets nocifs. La recherche d'une technique de traitement rapide et verte généralement applicable est donc d'une première importance. Deux nouvelles techniques de réticulation, que sont les traitements par rayons ultraviolets (UV) pour par faisceaux d'électrons (EB), ont donc été explorées dans cette thèse afin d'obtenir des membranes stables chimiquement et thermiquement, ce qui est intéressant pour les applications SRNF. Des membranes asymétriques, composées d'un réseau polymère semi-interpénétrant (SIPN), ont été préparées par séparation de phase induite par un solvant (NIPS). Le PSU a été choisi comme polymère grâce à ses caractéristiques intrinsèques suivantes : propriétés thermiques et mécaniques importante, photosensibilité et absence de groupes réactifs. Les membranes réticulées à structure SIPN ont été obtenues par traitement UV et EB. Ces techniques possèdent plusieurs avantages par rapport à la réticulation chimique : une réduction de la production de déchets, des besoins énergétiques plus faibles et des temps de traitement rapides. Dans une première partie, nous avons étudié l'influence de la fonctionnalité du réticulant, de l'énergie du rayonnement et du rapport polymère / réticulant sur l'efficacité de la réticulation par EB. Des agents de réticulation à base d'acrylate ont été utilisés. Les membranes obtenues ont été caractérisées par des expériences en ATR-FTIR, SEM et de filtration, ainsi que des essais de stabilité contre des solvants forts. Le meilleur type de réticulant et sa concentration optimale sous une dose d'EB optimale ont ensuite été sélectionnés pour les études suivantes. Dans la seconde partie, nous avons exploré les effets du rapport solvant / co-solvant et du temps d'évaporation avant la précipitation des membranes en PSU réticulées par la suite soit par UV et soit par EB; le tétrahydrofurane (THF) ou le 1,4-dioxane (DIO) étant utilisés comme solvant. Dans les deux cas, les morphologies membranaires différent en fonction des paramètres étudiés de l'inversion de phase. L'augmentation du temps d'évaporation réduit la formation de macrovides et permet l'apparition de structures spongieuses. Les flux de solvant sont généralement restés trop faible pour que les membranes soient vraiment utiles en SRNF. Un post-traitement a été effectué pour augmenter le flux en immergeant les membranes réticulées dans du dimethylformamide (DMF) pendant 48 h. Les membranes résultantes ont des perméances plus élevées et des taux de rejets plus faibles. / The importance of membrane technology as a separation technique has increased rapidly over the past decades thanks to its broad range of applications. The expanding market brings along the requirement of advanced polymeric materials, which show resistance towards swelling and plasticization in gas separation (GS) and towards harsh solvents and extreme pH conditions in solvent resistant nanofiltration (SRNF). At this stage, cross-linking has emerged as a promising technology to overcome these issues. Chemical cross- linking is one of the most commonly used techniques and is based on a chemical reaction between a polymer (e.g. polyimide) and a cross-linker (e.g. diamine or diol). However, for polymers which do not contain chemically reactive groups in their backbone, such as polysulfones (PSU), this technique is not feasible. Additionally, chemical cross-linking involves several processing steps and causes harmful waste streams, triggering the quest for a generally applicable, fast and green curing technique. Two new curing techniques, namely ultraviolet (UV) and electron beam (EB) curing, were explored in this thesis, in order to obtain chemically and thermally stable membranes, hence being attractive for SRNF applications. Asymmetric membranes, composed of a semi-interpenetrating polymer network (SIPN), were prepared via non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS). PSU was chosen as polymer because of its robust thermal and mechanical properties, photosensitivity and lack of reactive groups. Cross-linked membranes with SIPN structure were obtained via UV and EB-curing. In the first part, the influence of cross-linker functionality, radiation energy dose and polymer/crosslinker ratio on the EB-curing efficiency was investigated. Acrylate-based cross-linkers were employed. The obtained membranes were characterized with ATR-FTIR, SEM and filtration experiments, together with stability testing against harsh solvents. The best type of cross-linker and its optimum concentration under optimum EB-dose were then selected for further studies. In the second part, the effects of solvent/co-solvent ratio and the evaporation time before precipitation of UV and EB-cured PSU SRNF-membranes were explored, using tetrahydrofuran (THF) or 1,4-dioxane (DIO) as co-solvent. Both UV and EB-cured PSU membrane morphologies differed as function of the studied phase inversion parameters. Increasing evaporation time reduced macrovoid formation with appearance of spongy structures. The flux generally remained too low for membranes to become really useful in SRNF. A post treatment was performed to increase the flux by immersing UV-cured PSU-based membranes in dimethylformamide (DMF) for 48 h. The resultant membranes showed higher permeances and lower rejections, making them especially useful as potential candidates as stable supports in the preparation of thin film composite membranes. In a third part, the mechanical characteristics, the effect of casting thickness and the surface properties of the membranes cross-linked by both irradiation methods were further studied. Additionally, the swelling behavior of UV-cured thin PSU films as function of different curing parameters (i.e. radiation dose and cross-linker functionality) was analyzed with ellipsometry. In conclusion, solvent stable asymmetric PSU membranes were developed by two simple, environmentally friendly and highly effective methods. The performance and enhanced chemical resistance of the cured membranes show high potential for implementing both cross-linking procedures in adequate industrial applications after further optimization.

Sulfonated polysulfones BisAS and BPS were fabricated into dense polymer films, and their water and ion transport properties were systematically characterized. Fundamental NaCl and water transport properties were correlated with polymer chemistry, and water and NaCl permeability were found to increase with degree of sulfonation due to the increasing polymer water content. The BisAS backbone structure was found to result in greater water uptake, increasing water and salt permeability, though the polysulfones show evidence of sensitivity to the thermal casting process as well. Additionally, water and ion permeability and sorption values were determined for select polymers when exposed to a feed consisting of mixtures of monovalent and divalent cation salts. The divalent cations were found to sorb into the polymer much more favorably than the monovalent sodium, similarly to charged materials found in the literature. The sodium permeability of sulfonated polysulfones was found to increase in the presence of divalent cations by ratios of 2 to 5 times more than when exposed to an equivalent increase in feed charge concentration of monovalent cations. It has been hypothesized the more strongly charged divalent cations are neutralizing the sulfonate charges and suppressing Donnan exclusionary effects that reduce salt transport in charged polymers. / text

Biofouling impedes the performance of membrane bioreactors. In this study, we investigated the antifouling effects of polysulfone membranes that were modified by 1,2,3-triazole and palladium nanoparticles. The membranes to be tested were embedded within a drip flow biofilm reactor, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 was inoculated and allowed to establish biofilm on the tested membranes. It was found that 1,2,3-triazole and palladium nanoparticles can inhibit the bacterial growth in aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The decrease in bacterial growth was observed along with a decrease in the amount of total polysaccharide and Pel polysaccharide within the biofilm matrix but not the protein content.

This research study describes the gas separation performance of different sets of Polyethyleneoxide-block-Polysulfone-block-Polyethyleneoxide/poly(ether-block-amide) (PEO-b-PSU-b-PEO/Pebax) composite membranes for CO2 separation from N2 and CH4. Gas permeation properties of the membranes prepared were studied at ambient temperature (21oC) and 8bar. The dependence of gas flux and selectivity on pressure was explored for different pressures from 2.5 bar up to 19 bar also at ambient temperature. Pebax/PAN composite membranes have a range of CO2 permeance of 4467±274 GPU, 365±64 GPU for CH4 and 152±17 GPU for N2 with CO2/N2 and CO2/CH4selectivities ranges of 30 and 13 respectively. Improved CO2/N2 and CO2/CH4 selectivities coupled with flux reduction were obtained from the introduction of PEO-b-PSU-b-PEO films on Pebax/PAN composite membranes. The gas flux reduced to about one-tenth of Pebax/PAN membrane’s while the selectivities obtained for all the PEO-b-PSU-b- PEO/Pebax/PAN membrane range from 33 to 60 for CO2/N2 and 17 to 33 for CO2/CH4 as the thickness of PEO-b-PSU-b-PEO top layer increases.

No description available.

The aim of this work is to fabricate nanostructured membranes from polysulfone-based block copolymers through self-assembly and non-solvent induced phase separation. Block copolymers containing polysulfone are novel materials for this purpose providing better mechanical and thermal stability to membranes than polystyrene-based copolymers, which have been exclusively used now. Firstly, we synthesized a triblock copolymer, poly(tert-butyl acrylate)-b-polsulfone-b-poly(tert-butyl acrylate) through polycondensation and reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer polymerization. The obtained membrane has a highly porous interconnected skin layer composed of elongated micelles with a flower-like arrangement, on top of the graded finger-like macrovoids. Membrane surface hydrolysis was carried out in a combination with metal complexation to obtain metal-chelated membranes. The copper-containing membrane showed improved antibacterial capability. Secondly, a poly(acrylic acid)-b-polysulfone-b-poly(acrylic acid) triblock copolymer obtained by hydrolyzing poly(tert-butyl acrylate)-b-polsulfone-b-poly(tert-butyl acrylate) formed a thin film with cylindrical poly(acrylic acid) microdomains in polysulfone matrix through thermal annealing. A phase inversion membrane was prepared from the same polymer via self-assembly and chelation-assisted non-solvent induced phase separation. The spherical micelles pre-formed in a selective solvent mixture packed into an ordered lattice in aid of metal-poly(acrylic acid) complexation. The space between micelles was filled with poly(acrylic acid)-metal complexes acting as potential water channels. The silver0 nanoparticle-decorated membrane was obtained by surface reduction, having three distinct layers with different particle sizes. Other amphiphilic copolymers containing polysulfone and water-soluble segments such as poly(ethylene glycol) and poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) were also synthesized through coupling reaction and copper0-mediated reversible-deactivation radical polymerization. Finally, phase inversion membranes were prepared from polytriazole-polysulfone random copolymers, which were obtained by “clicking” 1,2,3-triazole ring substituents bearing OH groups onto the polysulfone backbone via copperI-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition. The increased hydrophilicity of membranes imparted the higher water permeability and fouling resistance to the ultrafiltration membranes. Polytriazole-b-polysulfone-b-polytriazole triblock copolymer was synthesized by RAFT and post-polymerization click modification. Hydrogen bond-mediated self-assembly induced the formation of a nanostructured polytriazole-b-polysulfone-b-polytriazole / poly(acrylic acid)-b-polysulfone-b-poly(acrylic acid) blend membrane with a 1: 1 stoichiometric ratio of triazole and acid. String-like fused micelles with polytriazole/poly(acrylic acid) corona were present on the membrane surface, after immersion in a coagulation bath of copper2+ aqueous solution.

This research project investigated the physical aging of glassy polymers in confined environments. Many recent studies of aging in glassy polymers have observed that aging behavior is often strongly affected by confinement. Understanding aging in confined environments (e.g., thin polymer films and nanocomposites) is vital for predicting long-term performance in applications that use confined glassy polymers, such as gas separation membranes and advanced nanocomposite materials. Aging in bulk and layered films produced via layer-multiplying co-extrusion was studied using gas permeability measurement and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The layered films consisted of polysulfone (PSF) and a rubbery co-layering material, with PSF layers ranging in thickness from ~185 nm to ~400 nm. Gas permeation aging studies at 35 °C revealed that the PSF layers in layered films aged in a manner that was similar to bulk PSF and independent of layer thickness. This finding differs from what was observed previously in freestanding PSF films, in which aging depended strongly on thickness and was accelerated relative to bulk. Isothermal aging studies at 170 °C and cooling rate studies were performed on both bulk and layered samples using DSC. The aging of the PSF layers was similar to aging in bulk PSF for films having PSF layer thicknesses of ~640 nm and ~260 nm, while the film with 185 nm PSF layers showed a slightly higher aging rate than that of bulk PSF. The results of the DSC studies generally support the conclusions of our gas permeation aging studies. The absence of strong thickness dependence in aging studies of layered films tends to support the idea that the effect of film thickness on physical aging stems from interfacial characteristics and not merely thickness per se. The physical aging of thin polystyrene (PS) films at 35 °C was also investigated using gas permeation techniques. PS films of 400 nm and 800 nm did not exhibit aging behavior that was highly accelerated relative to bulk or strongly dependent on film thickness. At the thicknesses and aging temperature considered, the aging of PS shows much weaker thickness dependence than that seen in polymers like PSF and Matrimid. / text

The Hybrid Sulphur process is one technology out of a multitude of known technologies responsible for hydrogen production. Within the latter hydrogen production cycle, it is pivotal to recover O2 as a by-product from a sulphuric acid decomposition reaction that produces SO2, H2O and O2. It is assumed that a simple phase separation stage carried out on the reaction products would liberate SO2 and O2 as a gaseous mixture leaving behind H2O in the liquid state. Several separation technologies are available to effect SO2/O2 separation, but membrane technology has proved to be dearer due to simplicity of the technology, low capital and energy costs. It is a pity though that insignificant work has been done that considers the SO2/O2 binary system in the membrane technology context. Of the insignificant work done, non – commercial membranes were employed. It is on the latter background that the present study was proposed. Six commercial membranes were selected from literature, two (Udel Polysulfone and Teflon AF 2400) of which are currently used in gas separation applications and the remainder (Hyflon M, Hyflon F, Halar and Nafion 117) not necessarily used as gas separation membranes but present a potential of separating SO2/O2. The inclusion of the latter four membranes sought to unearth unknown gas separation potentials of the membranes based on hypothetical 1 μm thick membranes. A screening technique was employed to eliminate poor performing membranes through pure component permeation of SO2, O2, N2 and CO2. The use of the additional gases (N2 and CO2) was meant to allow the generation of a pool of data that would be used as a yardstick to compare to literature and thus validate the authenticity of the designed set up. The single permeation experiments were carried out at 25°C and at absolute gas feed pressures of 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar, with the exception of Hyflon F experiments that were carried out at 3.85 bar, 2.85 bar and 1.85 bar also at 25°C. The effect of pressure on gas permeability and ideal selectivity of all gases against O2 was investigated. Udel Polysulfone and Nafion 117 presented clearly evident pressure dependant SO2 permeabilities whilst CO2, N2 and O2 permeabilities were sluggishly dependant on pressure in all membranes. Gas flux in general increased with increasing pressure as pressure is essentially the driving force for permeability. Membrane screening for further investigation was then performed based on a compromise between SO2/O2 ideal selectivity and SO2 flux in hypothetical 1 μm thick membranes. Membranes that presented the best SO2/O2 selectivity include, Udel Polysulfone with SO2/O2 selectivities of 46, 58 and 314 at 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar respectively, Nafion 117 with SO2/O2 selectivities of 30, 35 and 40 at 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar respectively and Halar with a SO2/O2 selectivity of 17 at 3 bar. The best SO2 flux through hypothetical 1 μm thick membranes was manifested in Teflon AF 2400 with SO2 fluxes of 3.6 m3.m-2.hr-1, 5.9 m3.m-2.hr-1 and 9.9 m3.m-2.hr-1 at trans-membrane pressures of 1 bar, 2 Bar and 3 Bar respectively, Udel Polysulfone with SO2 fluxes of 0.13 m3.m-2.hr-1, 0.32 m3.m-2.hr-1 and 2.56 m3.m-2.hr-1 at trans-membrane pressures of 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar respectively and Nafion 117 with SO2 fluxes of 0.48 m3.m-2.hr-1, 1.03 m3.m-2.hr-1 and 1.79 m3.m-2.hr-1 at 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar trans-membrane pressures respectively. Despite Teflon AF 2400 presenting the highest SO2 flux, the poor SO2/O2 ideal selectivity ≈ 1 rendered the membrane unfit for further investigation. The low SO2 flux (0.02 m3.m-2.hr-1) presented by Halar also rendered the membrane unfit for further investigation despite the relatively fair SO2/O2 ideal selectivity of 17. Binary permeation experiments were then performed on Udel Polysulfone and Nafion 117 after passing the single permeation screening test. Gas mixture compositions of (25 wt %:75 wt %, SO2:O2), (50 wt %:50 wt %, SO2:O2) and (75 wt %:25 wt %, SO2:O2) were employed. The binary permeation experiments were carried out at a temperature range of 15°C to 55°C and a SO2 feed partial pressure range of 1.1 ± 0.1 bar to 2.3 ± 0.1 bar. The SO2 permeate composition increased with pressure and decreased with temperature in both Udel Polysulfone and Nafion 117. Udel Polysulfone presented a superior SO2/O2 separation potential, concentrating a (25 wt %:75 wt %, SO2:O2) gas mixture to (94 wt %:6 wt %, SO2:O2) in a single step at 15°C and 2.2 ± 0.1 bar SO2 feed partial pressure. Nafion 117 concentrated the same gas mixture to (87 wt %:13 wt %, SO2:O2) also in a single step at 15 °C and 2.4 ± 0.1 bar SO2 feed partial pressure. Based on hypothetical 1 μm thick membranes, Nafion 117 presented generally high SO2 molar fluxes in mixture with O2 of about a magnitude higher than the SO2 molar fluxes presented in Udel Polysulfone. Also, Nafion 117 proved to be less prone to plasticisation within the pressure range considered. Despite Udel Polysulfone presenting generally lower SO2 molar fluxes, Udel Polysulfone was deemed to be the ideal membrane for the current SO2/O2 separation application as thicknesses of 1 μm of Nafion the perfluorosulfonic acid based membrane are currently unknown and also Udel Polysulfone presented the best SO2/O2 separation capability. The latter findings are envisaged to prompt further research on the production of ultra-thin perfluoro-sulfonic acid based membranes for the current application. / Thesis (MIng (Chemical Engineering))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013

The Hybrid Sulphur process is one technology out of a multitude of known technologies responsible for hydrogen production. Within the latter hydrogen production cycle, it is pivotal to recover O2 as a by-product from a sulphuric acid decomposition reaction that produces SO2, H2O and O2. It is assumed that a simple phase separation stage carried out on the reaction products would liberate SO2 and O2 as a gaseous mixture leaving behind H2O in the liquid state. Several separation technologies are available to effect SO2/O2 separation, but membrane technology has proved to be dearer due to simplicity of the technology, low capital and energy costs. It is a pity though that insignificant work has been done that considers the SO2/O2 binary system in the membrane technology context. Of the insignificant work done, non – commercial membranes were employed. It is on the latter background that the present study was proposed. Six commercial membranes were selected from literature, two (Udel Polysulfone and Teflon AF 2400) of which are currently used in gas separation applications and the remainder (Hyflon M, Hyflon F, Halar and Nafion 117) not necessarily used as gas separation membranes but present a potential of separating SO2/O2. The inclusion of the latter four membranes sought to unearth unknown gas separation potentials of the membranes based on hypothetical 1 μm thick membranes. A screening technique was employed to eliminate poor performing membranes through pure component permeation of SO2, O2, N2 and CO2. The use of the additional gases (N2 and CO2) was meant to allow the generation of a pool of data that would be used as a yardstick to compare to literature and thus validate the authenticity of the designed set up. The single permeation experiments were carried out at 25°C and at absolute gas feed pressures of 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar, with the exception of Hyflon F experiments that were carried out at 3.85 bar, 2.85 bar and 1.85 bar also at 25°C. The effect of pressure on gas permeability and ideal selectivity of all gases against O2 was investigated. Udel Polysulfone and Nafion 117 presented clearly evident pressure dependant SO2 permeabilities whilst CO2, N2 and O2 permeabilities were sluggishly dependant on pressure in all membranes. Gas flux in general increased with increasing pressure as pressure is essentially the driving force for permeability. Membrane screening for further investigation was then performed based on a compromise between SO2/O2 ideal selectivity and SO2 flux in hypothetical 1 μm thick membranes. Membranes that presented the best SO2/O2 selectivity include, Udel Polysulfone with SO2/O2 selectivities of 46, 58 and 314 at 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar respectively, Nafion 117 with SO2/O2 selectivities of 30, 35 and 40 at 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar respectively and Halar with a SO2/O2 selectivity of 17 at 3 bar. The best SO2 flux through hypothetical 1 μm thick membranes was manifested in Teflon AF 2400 with SO2 fluxes of 3.6 m3.m-2.hr-1, 5.9 m3.m-2.hr-1 and 9.9 m3.m-2.hr-1 at trans-membrane pressures of 1 bar, 2 Bar and 3 Bar respectively, Udel Polysulfone with SO2 fluxes of 0.13 m3.m-2.hr-1, 0.32 m3.m-2.hr-1 and 2.56 m3.m-2.hr-1 at trans-membrane pressures of 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar respectively and Nafion 117 with SO2 fluxes of 0.48 m3.m-2.hr-1, 1.03 m3.m-2.hr-1 and 1.79 m3.m-2.hr-1 at 1 bar, 2 bar and 3 bar trans-membrane pressures respectively. Despite Teflon AF 2400 presenting the highest SO2 flux, the poor SO2/O2 ideal selectivity ≈ 1 rendered the membrane unfit for further investigation. The low SO2 flux (0.02 m3.m-2.hr-1) presented by Halar also rendered the membrane unfit for further investigation despite the relatively fair SO2/O2 ideal selectivity of 17. Binary permeation experiments were then performed on Udel Polysulfone and Nafion 117 after passing the single permeation screening test. Gas mixture compositions of (25 wt %:75 wt %, SO2:O2), (50 wt %:50 wt %, SO2:O2) and (75 wt %:25 wt %, SO2:O2) were employed. The binary permeation experiments were carried out at a temperature range of 15°C to 55°C and a SO2 feed partial pressure range of 1.1 ± 0.1 bar to 2.3 ± 0.1 bar. The SO2 permeate composition increased with pressure and decreased with temperature in both Udel Polysulfone and Nafion 117. Udel Polysulfone presented a superior SO2/O2 separation potential, concentrating a (25 wt %:75 wt %, SO2:O2) gas mixture to (94 wt %:6 wt %, SO2:O2) in a single step at 15°C and 2.2 ± 0.1 bar SO2 feed partial pressure. Nafion 117 concentrated the same gas mixture to (87 wt %:13 wt %, SO2:O2) also in a single step at 15 °C and 2.4 ± 0.1 bar SO2 feed partial pressure. Based on hypothetical 1 μm thick membranes, Nafion 117 presented generally high SO2 molar fluxes in mixture with O2 of about a magnitude higher than the SO2 molar fluxes presented in Udel Polysulfone. Also, Nafion 117 proved to be less prone to plasticisation within the pressure range considered. Despite Udel Polysulfone presenting generally lower SO2 molar fluxes, Udel Polysulfone was deemed to be the ideal membrane for the current SO2/O2 separation application as thicknesses of 1 μm of Nafion the perfluorosulfonic acid based membrane are currently unknown and also Udel Polysulfone presented the best SO2/O2 separation capability. The latter findings are envisaged to prompt further research on the production of ultra-thin perfluoro-sulfonic acid based membranes for the current application. / Thesis (MIng (Chemical Engineering))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013