TY - JOUR A1 - Zorn, R. A1 - Szymoniak, Paulina A1 - Kolmangadi, Mohamed Aejaz A1 - Malpass-Evans, R. A1 - McKeown, N. A1 - Tyagi, M. A1 - Böhning, Martin A1 - Schönhals, Andreas T1 - Low frequency vibrations and diffusion in disordered polymers bearing an intrinsic microporosity as revealed by neutron scattering N2 - The microscopic diffusion and the low frequency density of states (VDOS) of PIM-EATB(CH3) are investigated by inelastic and quasi-elastic neutron scattering where also the demethylated counterpart of PIM-EA-TB(H2) is considered. These intrinsic microporous polymers are characterized by large BET surface area values of several hundred m2/g and pore sizes between 0.5 and 2 nm. Detailed comparison is made to the archetype of polymers of intrinsic microporosity, PIM-1, and polynorbornenes also bearing a microporosity. Due to the wavelength of neutrons, the diffusion and vibrations can be addressed on microscopic length and time scales. From the inelastic neutron scattering experiments the low frequency density of states (VDOS) is estimated which shows excess contributions to the Debye-type VDOS known as Boson peak. It was found that the maximum frequency of the Boson peak decreases with increasing microporosity characterized by the BET surface area. However, besides the BET surface area, additional factors such as the backbone stiffness govern the maximum frequency of the Boson peak. Further the mean squared displacement related to microscopic motions was estimated from elastic fixed window scans. At temperatures above 175 K, the mean squared displacement PIM-EA-TB(CH3) is higher than that for the demethylated counterpart PIM-EA-TB(H2). The additional contribution found for PIM-EATB(CH3) is ascribed to the rotation of the methyl group in this polymer because the only difference between the two structures is that PIM-EA-TB(CH3) has methyl groups where PIM-EA-TB(H2) has none. A detailed comparison of the molecular dynamics is also made to that of PIM-1 and the microporous polynorbornene PTCNSi1. The manuscript focuses on the importance of vibrations and the localized molecular mobility characterized by the microscopic diffusion on the gas Transport in polymeric separation membranes. In the frame of the random gate model localized fluctuations can open or close bottlenecks between pores to enable the diffusion of gas molecules. KW - Polymer of intrisic microporosity KW - Neutron scattering KW - Boson peak KW - Methyl group rotation PY - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-538490 VL - 11 IS - 12 SP - 1 EP - 16 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-53849 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zorn, R. A1 - Yin, Huajie A1 - Lohstroh, W. A1 - Harrison, W. A1 - Budd, P.M. A1 - Pauw, Brian Richard A1 - Böhning, Martin A1 - Schönhals, Andreas T1 - Anomalies in the low frequency vibrational density of states for a polymer with intrinsic microporosity - the Boson peak of PIM-1 N2 - Polymers with intrinsic microporosity are promising candidates for the active separation layer in gas separation membranes. Here, the vibrational density of states (VDOS) for PIM-1, the prototypical polymer with intrinsic microporosity, is investigated by means of inelastic neutron scattering. The results are compared to data measured for a more conventional high-performance polyimide used in gas separation membranes (Matrimid). The measured data show the characteristic low frequency excess contribution to VDOS above the Debye sound wave level, generally known as the Boson peak in glass-forming materials. In comparison to the Boson peak of Matrimid, that of PIM-1 is shifted to lower frequencies. This shift is discussed considering the microporous, sponge-like structure of PIM-1 as providing a higher compressibility at the molecular scale than for conventional polymers. For an annealed PIM-1 sample, the Boson peak shifts to higher frequencies in comparison to the un-annealed sample. These changes in the VDOS of the annealed PIM-1 sample are related to changes in the microporous structure as confirmed by X-ray scattering. KW - Polymers KW - Boson peak KW - Neutron scattering KW - Physical aging KW - Polymer of intrinsic microporosity PY - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/C7CP07141H SN - 1463-9076 SN - 1463-9084 VL - 20 IS - 3 SP - 1355 EP - 1363 PB - The Royal Society of Chemistry AN - OPUS4-43808 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -