Now, MIT engineers have developed a groundbreaking membrane that can filter crude oil components by their molecular size, potentially replacing energy-hungry heat-based methods.
The advance could reshape how the world processes oil and dramatically cut related emissions.
A new approach to oil separation
MIT’s team created a thin polymer membrane that sieves oil compounds based on shape and size, rather than boiling points. This shift could reduce the energy required for separation by up to 90 percent.
“This is a whole new way of envisioning a separation process,” said Zachary P. Smith, associate professor of chemical engineering at MIT and senior author of the study.