Gas Transport Mechanisms and Applications Through Graphene-Based Membranes

Gas separation plays a vital role in various fields, including chemical industry, environmental engineering, healthcare, etc. Membrane-based separations have advantages in energy efficiency, environmental compatibility, and operational flexibility, which call for the emergence of more advanced materials. As one of the thinnest membranes, graphene-based membranes have garnered huge attention due to their potential to overcome the permeability and selectivity trade-off in traditional polymeric membranes. Therefore, understanding gas transport mechanisms and guiding applications in graphene-based membranes is both essential and urgent. In this review, the focus is on gas transport across graphene-based membranes and is divided into two major components: theoretical progress and experimental progress. Gas transport theory and numerical analysis at the continuum to sub-continuum regime are first discussed to establish the foundation for graphene-based membranes. Then, simulation and experimental developments are presented to deepen the understanding of fundamental mechanisms and to promote the next-generation graphene-based gas separation membrane design. Finally, challenges and perspectives in this advancing field are discussed for the fundamental research and performance improvements.