Sour to sweet crude oil with membranes

The sulfur removal from crude oil is important for economic, energetic, and environmental reasons. Membranes are competitive for a variety of industrial separations and could be integrated in oil fractionation process. The key challenge lies in designing materials that are easily processable for membrane production while delivering high performance under the demanding conditions of industrial operation for the separation of intricate mixtures. We report the synthesis of polytriazole membranes with chemically stable hydrophilic and hydrophobic segments. These membranes were evaluated for the fractionation of crude oil, demonstrating the capability to separate lighter oil fractions, and remove asphaltene. Simultaneously, they exhibit an impressive capability to eliminate up to 50% of the sulfur compounds. Their superior performance has the potential to expedite the shift toward a more sustainable petrochemical industry.