Characterization technique of gases permeation properties in polymers: H2, He, N2 and Ar gas

Jae Kap Jung; Ji Hun Lee; Jin Sub Jang; Nak Kwan Chung; Chang Young Park; Un Bong Baek; Seung Hoon Nahm

doi:10.1038/s41598-022-07321-1

Characterization technique of gases permeation properties in polymers: H₂, He, N₂ and Ar gas

Sci Rep. 2022 Feb 28;12(1):3328. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-07321-1.

Authors

Jae Kap Jung^{1

1}, Ji Hun Lee², Jin Sub Jang², Nak Kwan Chung², Chang Young Park³, Un Bong Baek², Seung Hoon Nahm²

Affiliations

¹ Team of Hydrogen Energy Materials Research, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Korea. jkjung@kriss.re.kr.
² Team of Hydrogen Energy Materials Research, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Korea.
³ Department of Physics and Research Institute of Natural Science, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, 52828, Korea.

Abstract

We demonstrate a simple experimental technology for characterizing the gas permeation properties of H₂, He, N₂ and Ar absorbed in polymers. This is based on the volumetric measurement of released gas and an upgraded diffusion analysis program after high-pressure exposure. Three channel measurements of sorption content of gases emitted from polymers after decompression are simultaneously conducted, and then, the gas uptake/diffusivity as a function of exposed pressure are determined in nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubbers, low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE), which are used for gas sealing materials under high pressure. The pressure-dependent gas transport behaviors of the four gases are presented and compared. Gas sorption follows Henry's law up to 9 MPa, while pressure-dependent diffusion behavior is not observed below 6 MPa. The magnitude of the diffusivity of the four gases decreases in the order D_He > D_H2 > D_Ar > D_N2 in all polymers, closely related to the kinetic diameter of the gas molecules. The dependence of gas species on solubility is in contrast to that on diffusivity. The linear correlation between logarithmic solubility and critical temperature of the gas molecule was newly observed.