Poly(phenylene oxide)‐based polymer electrolyte membranes for fuel‐cell applications

Abstract

Poly(phenylene oxide)s were synthesized by the oxidative polymerization of 2-phenyl phenol (PP) and 2-allyl phenol (AP). The copolymers were also synthesized with 80 mol % PP and 20 mol % AP and with equimolar monomers. The polymers were characterized. Blends of these polymers with poly(vinylidene fluoride) were prepared. These blend membranes were sulfonated, and their suitability for applications in fuel cells was evaluated.

Characterization of nanohybrid membranes for direct methanol fuel cell applications

“…Moreover, their poor proton conductivity as a limiting property can be improved through the sulfonation process. Sulfonation is used to augment proton conductivity as well as the [19,20]. However, too many acidic groups induce excessive water swelling and methanol diffusion, which are considered as undesirable properties for PEM materials.…”

Preparation of sulfonated crosslinked poly(2,6‐dimethyl‐1,4‐phenylene oxide) membranes for direct methanol fuel cells by using electron beam irradiation

“…To date, one of the most promising ways to prepare high performance PEM for DMFC is the use of aromatic hydrocarbon polymers as the polymer backbone 4, 5. There are several advantages of aromatic hydrocarbon polymers: (1) they are cheaper than perfluorosulfonic acid membranes and (2) they can be easily modified to conduct protons by the introduction of sulfonic acid groups in their main chain or side chain.…”

Contribution of nanoclays to the barrier properties of a model proton exchange membrane for fuel cell application

“…Indeed, a high methanol permeability is the common drawback of all the membranes used nowadays in DMFCs, i.e. perfluorosulfonated ionomers (PFSI), such as Nafion ® , sulfonated polyaromatics, including polysulfone (PSUs) [2,3], polyetheretherketone (SPEEK) [4,5] and polyphenylene oxide (SPPO) [6], and polybenzimidazole [7,8]. The main strategy used until now toovercome this problem consists in dispersing inorganic fillers, such as silica [9], heteropolyacid [10,11], and zirconium phosphate [12] within the polymer.…”