Two series of random sulfonated poly-(benzothiazole-co-benzimidazole) polymers (sPBT-BI) with 70% and 60% degree of sulfonation were evaluated as proton exchange membranes. sPBT was also prepared for a comparative study. The mechanical properties of sPBT-BI were greatly enhanced by incorporation of benzimidazole (BI); sPBT-BI70-10 showed a tensile strength of 125 MPa and elongation at break of 38.9%, an increase of 56.5% and 145%, respectively, compared with sPBT. The solubility, dimensional stability, thermal properties, and oxidative stability of sPBT-BI were also improved. The ionic clusters of sPBT-BI membranes in both AFM phase images and TEM images became narrower with increasing amounts of BI while containing the same molar amount of sulfonic acid groups. This resulted in lower dimensional swelling and higher mechanical strength, but the proton conductivity decreased. However, high proton conductivity was achieved by incorporating an appropriate content of BI. PEMFC H 2 /air single cell performances and durabilities were improved by incorporation of 5% of BI units in sPBT.

Thermally rearranged polybenzoxazole-co-imide (TR-PBOI) membranes exhibited excellent flux (80 kg m2 h−1) and salt rejection (>99.99%) over more than 186 hours as well as potential for use in membrane crystallization.

In this work, three functional groups were introduced in poly(arylene ether sulfone) membranes to investigate the effects of cationic functional groups in the membranes on reverse electrodialysis performance. Our results showed that controlling the swelling behaviour of the membranes was an important factor for increasing the permselectivity while maintaining their high conductivity.

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