Comparative life cycle assessment of polymeric membranes: Polyacrylonitrile, polyvinylimidazole and poly (acrylonitrile-co-vinylimidazole) applied for CO2 sequestration

The life cycle assessment analysis of polymeric membranes, namely polyacrylonitrile (PAN), polyvinylimidazole (PVIM), and copolymer P(AN-co-VIM): 50:50 ratio utilized for CO2 sequestration is presented in this work for the first time. The Center of Environmental Science (CML) baseline 2000, cumulative energy demand, ecological footprint, and greenhouse gas protocol methods were applied to attain comprehensive information regarding the originated environmental burdens from the synthesis of the membrane. The PVIM membrane manifested the minimum environmental impacts, comparatively. The global warming, marine ecotoxicity, and human toxicity categories belonged to the P(AN-co-VIM) as the polymeric membrane with the highest environmental impact were accounted for 1.20, 1.36, and 1.18, greater than PVIM, respectively. These impacts were augmented in the range of 16.88%-27.59% for P(AN-co-VIM), predominantly derived from dimethylformamide (DMF) consumption and electricity demand. The P(AN-co-VIM) energy usage was 3799 MJ with a 92% contribution of fossil fuels, 1.2 times more than the PVIM. The CO2 emission (kg CO2 eq) from fossil fuels was as follows: P(ANco-VIM) (146.2) > PAN (123.3) > PVIM (121.8). Besides, the sensitivity of PAN, PVIM, and P(AN-co-VIM) regarded a +/- 20% fluctuation in the DMF was estimated as 14.41-17.71%, 13.45-19.08%, and 11.08-16.78% for PAN, PVIM, and P(AN-co-VIM), respectively. Accordingly, the PVIM was recognized as the membrane with the highest environmental compatibility. (C) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The life cycle assessment analysis of polymeric membranes (PAN, PVIM, and P(AN-co-VIM)) utilized for CO2 sequestration was compared in this study, with PVIM membrane showing the least environmental impact and P(AN-co-VIM) membrane exhibiting the highest impacts in global warming, marine ecotoxicity, and human toxicity categories. The results indicated that PVIM membrane is recognized as the membrane with the highest environmental compatibility.