CONCLUSIONS
In summary, we have developed a concept of embedding polymer in MOFs by simple one-pot synthesis to improve the separation performance of MMMs. The versatile polymer embedding strategy can promote the formation of large MOF microspheres and strengthen the interaction of fillers to polymer matrixes, while maintaining the crystalline structures of MOFs. Thanks to the elimination of the interfacial voids and filler aggregations from embedding polymer, and the formation of superior transport channels from incorporating large pMOF MSs, the prepared MMMs with excellent compatibility exhibit greatly enhanced selectivity and permeability. For examples, the pMOF-MS/PSF MMMs show 220% and 123% CO2 permeability and 131% and 145% CO2/CH4 selectivity as the pure PSF membranes and MOF MMMs, respectively. The substantially increased permeability and selectivity, coupled with the simple, versatile, and efficient preparation processes, indicate that the polymer-embedding of MOF fillers reported here offers an alternative route to improve filler geometry, interfacial compatibility, and transport passages for obtaining high-performance MMMs.