Effects of film history on gas transport in a fluorinated aromatic polyimide

The effects of film formation procedures on transport properties are reported for a rigid‐chained, fluorinated, aromatic polyimide. Residual dimethylacetamide (DMAC) solvent present in films formed under certain casting protocols produces complexities in the permeation behavior of helium and carbon dioxide. Specifically, helium permeabilities are lower, while those of carbon dioxide are higher, in a film containing 8 wt% residual DMAC than in an annealed film containing < 1 wt% DMAC. Significant differences in transport properties are also observed between films prepared using two different casting techniques. These differences appear to be due to differences in organization of chain segments within films. The results of this study emphasize the considerable care needed in formation and postformation processing of these materials to ensure optimum flux/selectivity properties in such applications.