Recent progress in thermally rearranged (TR) polymer based membranes for sustainable gas separations

Thermally rearranged (TR) polymers are unique high-performance materials with rigid aromatic rings like benzoxazoles and benzimidazoles, that are produced/transformed by heat treatment at higher temperature. TR polymers possess excellent gas separation properties, corrosion resistance and thermal stability for promising industrial applications. This critical review highlights recent advances in TR polymer based membranes for gas separation mostly in the last five years. From structural design methods to high-performance gas separation applications, we have summarized the monomer architecture design, copolymerization, cross-linking, blending, and other strategies used to enhance the comprehensive properties (such as gas separation properties and mechanical properties) of TR polymer based membranes. Finally, future directions for TR polymeric membranes are proposed for energetic-efficient gas separations mainly targeting at carbon capture and hydrogen purification.