Abstract
We identified ways to stop the dissociative swelling of graphene oxide membranes in the presence of humidity by incorporating nanodiamonds. The stabilization phenomenon is identified as an enhanced electrostatic interaction between the negatively charged graphene oxide sheets and the positively charged carbonaceous nanodiamonds. Essentially, through the introduction of nanodiamonds, water is prevented from (a) absorbing within the graphene oxide structures, (b) blocking the pathways for hydrogen transport, and (c) irreversibly re–organizing the nanolaminated graphene oxide galleries. Of notable interest, the overall permaselective performance of the membrane was found to exceed that of any reported membrane material performance for the separation of carbon dioxide from hydrogen. For comparison, we surveyed best–in–class performances reported for silicas, polymers and metal and covalent organic frameworks.
