Sulfonated poly(ether sulfone ether ketone ketone)/sulfonated poly(ether sulfone) blend membranes with reduced methanol permeability

Abstract

Proton exchange membranes were prepared by blending sulfonated poly(ether sulfone ether ketone ketone) (SPESEKK) with sulfonated poly(ether sulfone) (SPES). The morphology, tensile strength, proton conductivity and methanol permeability of the blend membranes were investigated. The scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope observation indicates the good dispersion of the SPES in SPESEKK polymer matrix. The addition of SPES also enhances the tensile strength of the SPESEKK membrane. The blend membrane shows lower methanol diffusivity and higher proton conductivity with comparison to the pure SPESEKK membrane, ascribing to the inhabitation of the player SPES to methanol permeation and facilitation of the increment of sulfonic acid groups to the proton transport. The SPESEKK/SPES 5 : 5 membrane exhibits an appreciable tensile strength of 52.3 MPa and a reduced methanol permeability of 6.6 Â 10 À7 cm 2 s À1 . This SPESEKK/SPES composite membrane shows a potential feasibility as a promising electrolyte for direct methanol fuel cells.

Organic–inorganic hybrid proton-conducting electrolyte membranes based on sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone) and SiO2–SO3H network for fuel cells

“…[5][6][7] Among the numerous candidates for more economic hydrocarbon-based polymers, sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone) (SPAES) has emerged as one of the most promising candidates with great potential for fuel cells due to its high thermal stability, excellent mechanical strength, cost competitiveness, and strong resistance to fuel crossover. [8][9][10] For SPAES membranes in general, both the proton conductivity and water uptake increase simultaneously with the increasing degree of sulfonation (DS). However, the PEMs with excessively high DS frequently suffer several problems associated with excessively high water uptake which results in poor dimensional and mechanical stability during the fuel cell operation.…”

Segmental dynamics of functional graphene‐filled poly(ether sulfone ether ketone ketone) nanocomposites

“…To overcome these drawbacks, introduction of pendant groups, polar moieties, and noncoplanar segments into the main chains, as well as functionalized modification, is a proven method to achieve high‐performance polymers and their corresponding composites. Poly(ether sulfone ether ketone ketone) (PESEKK) with tetrahedral sulfone groups has attracted remarkable interest for its advantages on the improvement of both T g and solubility . PESEKK were prepared by low temperature solution polycondensation of 4,4‐bis(phenoxy)diphenyl sulfone and isophthaloyl chloride, in the presence of aluminum chloride.…”

Novel hybrid acid–base membranes based on sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone), tetraethoxysilane and (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane for fuel cell application

“…Among the potential alternatives, sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone) (SPAES) is a promising material due to its high thermal stability, excellent mechanical strength, cost competitiveness and strong resistance to fuel cross-over for fuel cells. 2,[4][5][6][7] However, such sulfonated membranes must possess a minimum ion exchange capacity (IEC) of 1.4-1.7 meq/g so as to obtain the low ionic resistance that is required in the application of electromembranes. Although a high IEC is considerably beneficial to PEMFC applications, it readily sacrifices the mechanical property, dimensional stability and methanol permeation of the membrane materials 8 because of excessive swelling.…”