Spray-assisted layer-by-layer self-assembly of tertiary-amine-stabilized gold nanoparticles and graphene oxide for efficient CO₂ capture

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is the process of capturing carbon dioxide (CO₂) produced from the combustion of fossil fuels. CO₂ is a major contributor to global warming and should be removed after combustion. The objective of this research is to design a CO₂ capture membrane consisting of tertiary-amine-stabilized gold nanoparticles (Au NPs), graphene oxide (GO), and polyelectrolytes. A high CO₂ capture ability is most important for designing a CO₂ capture membrane that can maintain a high gas permeance. Multilayer films were fabricated using an automatic spray-assisted layer-by-layer (LbL) machine. The polar affinity of polyelectrolytes assisted the CO₂ capture of tertiary amines. The randomly oriented and loosely stacked GO layers not only helped align the Au NPs in the polyelectrolyte matrix, but also helped maintain the permeance of N₂. Thus, we successfully fabricated a CO₂ adsorptive multilayer nanocoating with a maximum CO₂/N₂ selectivity of 48.48 while maintaining the N₂ permeance at 1204.25 GPU.