Anion Exchange Membranes Based on Chloromethylation of Fluorinated Poly(arylene ether)s

This report details the properties of fluorine-containing anion exchange membranes(AEMs) synthesized by chloromethylation and quaternization of fluorinated poly(arylene ether)s(FPAEs) based on decafluorobiphenyl and bisphenol A. Meanwhile, we compared their properties with those of their non-fluorinated counterparts, Udel-based AEMs. The reactivity of the chloromethylation of fluorinated poly(arylene ether)s was lowered by the strong electron-withdrawing group, per-fluorinated biphenyl residue. Therefore higher temperature, more chloromethylation reagent, and longer reaction time were needed in the chloromethylation of FPAEs. Because of the hydrophobicity of fluorine, the swelling of FPAEs was depressed. In the FPAE-based AEMs, the water uptake of FPAE-1 membrane(F-1) was just 30%. There is a strong correlation between water uptake and conductivity for both Udel- and FPAE-based AEMs. Among all the membranes, the water uptake and the conductivity of FPAE-3 membrane(F-3) could reach up to 100% and 13.47 mS/cm respectively at 30 ℃. The mechanical properties of FPAE-based AEMs at room temperature were worse than those of Udel-based ones because of the weak intermolecular interaction caused by the low polarizability of fluorine. However, their high temperature mechanical properties are better, which can be explained in terms of low swelling.     

Poly(Ethylene Piperidinium)s for Anion Exchange Membranes

The lack of anion exchange membranes (AEMs) that possess both high hydroxide conductivity and stable mechanical and chemical properties poses a major challenge to the development of high-performance fuel cells. Improving one side of the balance between conductivity and stability usually means sacrificing the other. Herein, we used facile, high-yield chemical reactions to design and synthesize a piperidinium polymer with a polyethylene backbone for AEM fuel cell applications. To improve the performance, we introduced ionic crosslinking into high-cationic-ratio AEMs to suppress high water uptake and swelling while further improving the hydroxide conductivity. Remarkably, PEP80-20PS achieved a hydroxide conductivity of 354.3 mS cm⁻¹ at 80 °C while remaining mechanically stable. Compared with the base polymer PEP80, the water uptake of PEP80-20PS decreased by 69 % from 813 % to 350 %, and the swelling decreased substantially by 85 % from 350.0 % to 50.2 % at 80 °C. PEP80-20PS also showed excellent alkaline stability, 84.7 % remained after 35 days of treatment with an aqueous KOH solution. The chemical design in this study represents a significant advancement toward the development of simultaneously highly stable and conductive AEMs for fuel cell applications.     

Preparation of Anion Exchange Membrane Based on Imidazolium Functionalized Poly(arylene ether ketone)

The authors presented a novel synthetic route for the imidazolium functionalized poly(arylene ether ketone)s, derived from an engineering plastics polymer, a poly(arylene ether ketone) with 3,3',5,5'-tetramethyl-4,4'-dihydroxybiphenyl moiety(PAEK-TM). The preparation of anion exchange membranes comprised converting benzylic methyl groups to bromomethyl groups by a radical reaction, followed by the functionalization of bromomethylated PAEK with alkyl imidazoles, i.e., methyl, butyl or vinyl imidazole. The structure of imidazolium functionalized PAEK was proved by ¹H NMR spectra. A class of flexible and tough membranes was then achieved by subsequent film-forming and anion exchange processes. The water uptake and hydroxide conductivities of membranes are comparable or superior to those of quaternary ammonium(QA) anion exchange membranes. This work demonstrated a new route for non-QA anion exchange membrane design, avoiding the chloromethylation reagent and precisely controlling the degree and location of imidazolium groups.     

高性能氢化星型聚(苯乙烯-b-丁二烯-b-苯乙烯)嵌段共聚物阴离子交换膜的制备、结构与性能

利用常压催化加氢法合成氢化星型聚(苯乙烯-b-丁二烯-b-苯乙烯)嵌段共聚物(HSBS),依次通过氯甲基化、季铵化和碱化反应,制备两种综合性能良好的碱性阴离子交换膜(AEMs),HSBS4303-OH和HSBS4402-OH(二者制备原料中苯乙烯质量分数分别为30%和40%)。 采用傅里叶变换红外光谱(FTIR)对AEMs的结构和制备过程进行表征,并对膜的离子电导率、吸水率、溶胀度、机械性能、微相结构和耐碱稳定性等进行系统地研究。 结果表明,HSBS在90 ℃左右出现了对应于结晶结构的特征熔融峰,相较于SBS,其机械性能及尺寸稳定性显著提高。 两种AEMs中,HSBS4402-OH的性能最佳,该膜的离子交换容量为1.99 mmol/g,30 ℃时的吸水率和溶胀度分别为27.65%和5.12%,80 ℃下的离子电导率高达86.8 mS/cm。 在60 ℃下,采用2 mol/L NaOH溶液浸泡432 h后,该膜的离子电导率损失仅为8.3%。 显而易见,本文方法能为碱性阴离子交换膜燃料电池提供很有前途的AEMs。     

季铵盐阴离子交换膜研究进展

近年来,阴离子交换膜燃料电池的发展受到了广泛关注。开发具有碱稳定性能优异,电导率高的阴离子交换膜(AEMs)材料成为了研究的热点。AEMs主要由聚合物骨架和阳离子基团组成,这两者是影响膜碱稳定性和电导率的重要因素。本文综述了季铵盐类阴离子交换膜聚合物骨架结构中含有醚氧键和不含醚氧键的烷基季铵盐AEMs、N-螺环季铵盐AEMs和环季铵盐AEMs的碱稳定性、电导率等性能;总结了不同骨架结构季铵盐AEMs碱稳定性的差异;分析了季铵盐的降解机理。同时对于含有季铵盐阳离子交换基团的AEMs的结构设计进行了分析和展望。     

Structure–property correlations of sulfonated polyimides. II. Effect of substituent groups on membrane properties

A series of sulfonated polyimides with increasing alkyl substituents in the o‐position to diamine were synthesized from 4,4′‐methylene dianiline, 4,4′‐diamine‐3,3′‐dimethyl‐diphenylmethane, and 4,4′‐diamine‐3,5,3′,5′‐tetraethyl‐diphenylmethane using 1,4,5,8‐naphthalenetetracarboxylic dianhydride and perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride by chemical imidization method. 4,4′‐Diaminobiphenyl 2,2′‐disulfonic acid was used as sulfonated diamine. The variation in the membrane properties with increase in substitution was analyzed. Solubility increased with substitution whereas the thermal stability decreased with increase in substitution. Ion exchange capacity and water uptake reduced with increase in substitution because of the low sulfonic acid content at a particular weight due to the increased molecular weight of the repeating unit. The conductivity of the substituted diamines was higher than the unsubstituted diamines at higher temperature regardless of low ion exchange capacity and water uptake. The increase in conductivity with increase in temperature was more rapid in polyimides than in Nafion®115. Hydrolytic stability of the polyimides with substitution is more than the unsubstituted diamines. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 3621–3630, 2004     

序列式含芴季铵化聚芳醚砜阴离子交换膜的制备及交联改性

为得到具有高电导率和稳定性的阴离子交换膜,采用两步聚合法合成了含芴的序列式聚芳醚砜,经付克氯甲基化、季铵化及碱化制备了季铵化聚芳醚砜,并以脂肪族二胺(N,N,N′,N′-四甲基丙二胺(TMPDA)及N,N,N′,N′-四甲基己二胺(TMHDA))为交联剂,通过直接交联及后交联法分别制备了2类序列交联型阴离子交换膜.制得的膜材料离子交换容量为1.59~2.12 mmol/g,柔韧结实.与具有相似离子交换容量的非交联膜相比,交联膜的抗溶剂性能、尺寸稳定性、离子电导率等性能均得到了提高.交联膜在高温水中的水解稳定性、强碱性条件下的化学稳定性显著增强.探讨了直接浇铸交联处理及成膜后交联处理2种交联方式对膜性能的影响,结果表明,后交联处理可以有效避免浇膜过程凝胶的形成,而且膜的稳定性相对于未交联膜有大幅度提高.尤其以TMHDA为交联剂的后交联膜的各项性能均优于相应非交联膜,IEC为2.17 mmol/g的PCL-M(H)膜,在30°C时吸水率为99%,膜径向尺寸变化率为15%,电导率为23.8 mS/cm,90°C时电导率达到82 mS/cm,经过4 mol/L的NaOH溶液室温处理240 h后,离子电导率损失为7.6%,100°C水处理24 h后重量损失为5.1%,表现出较好的稳定性.     

Synthesis and properties of hydroxide conductive polymers carrying dense aromatic side-chain quaternary ammonium groups

A series of hydroxide conductive polymers QTBMs carryingdense aromatic side-chain quaternary ammonium groups has been synthesized by using a new monomer of 3,3′-di(3′′,5′′-dimethylphenyl)-4,4′-difluorodiphenyl sulfone and other commercial monomers via polycondensation reaction, and subsequent bromination, quaternization and alkalization.The chemical structures of the ionomers were confirmed by ~1H-and ~(13)C-NMR spectroscopy. Water uptake, swelling ratio, hydroxide conductivity, the number of bonded water per ammonium group(λ), volumetric ion exchange capacity(IEC_(Vwet)), mechanical and thermal properties, and chemical stability were systematically evaluated for the series of QTBMs membranes. QTBMs showed IECs ranging from1.02 meq·g~(-1)to 2.11 meq·g~(-1); in particular, QTBM-60 membrane with the highest IEC(2.11 meq·g~(-1)) had very high hydroxide ion conductivity of 131.9 m S·cm~(-1) at 80 °C, which was attributed to the well assembled nano-channels with distinct phase separation evidenced by small-angle X-ray scattering(SAXS). It was found that the hydrated QTBMs membranes were mechanically stable with moderate water uptakes and swelling ratios, high chemical stability under the harsh alkaline conditions. This work provides a facile way to prepare anion exchange membranes(AEMs) with high performances for the application in alkaline fuel cells.     

阴离子交换膜的制备和改性研究进展

离子膜交换有广泛的应用,本文介绍了有机阴离子交换膜的修饰和改性以及新兴的有机-无机杂化阴离子交换膜的制备方法和发展现状,特别是介绍了近年来开发的一些不需要使用氯甲醚的阴离子膜制备新路线。     

A π-Conjugated Anion-Exchange Membrane with an Ordered Ion-Conducting Channel via the McMurray Coupling Reaction

The McMurry coupling is a facile, gentle and low-cost chemical reaction for synthesizing. Here, for the first time, we employed the McMurry coupling reaction to prepare π-conjugated anion exchange membranes (AEMs). The inter-chain π-π stacking between adjacent benzene rings induces directional self-assembly aggregation and enables highly ordered ion-conductive channels. The resulting structure was characterized through UV/VIS spectrum, X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern, small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations, leading to high OH⁻ conductivity of 135.5 mS cm⁻¹ at 80 °C. Furthermore, the double bonds in the π-conjugated system also trigger in situ self-crosslinking of the AEMs to enhance dimensional and alkaline stability. Benefiting from this advantage, the as-obtained Cr-QPPV-2.51 AEM exhibits superior alkaline stability (95 % conductivity retention after 3000 hrs in 1 M KOH at 80 °C) and high mechanical strength of 34.8 MPa. Moreover, the fuel cell using Cr-QPPV-2.51 shows a maximum peak power density of 1.27 W cm⁻² at 80 °C.     

Utilizing thiol–ene chemistry for crosslinked nickel cation‐based anion exchange membranes

Metal cation‐based anion exchange membranes (AEMs) are a unique class of materials that have shown potential to be highly stable AEMs with competitive conductivities. Here, we expand upon previous work to report the synthesis of crosslinked nickel cation‐based AEMs formed using the thiol–ene reaction. These thiol–ene‐based samples were first characterized for their morphology, both with and without nickel cations, where the nickel‐containing membranes demonstrated a disordered scattering peak characteristic of ionic clusters. The samples were then characterized for their water uptake, chemical and mechanical stability, and conductivity. They showed a combination of high water content and extreme brittleness, which also resulted in fairly low conductivity. The brittleness resulted from large water swelling as well as the need for each nickel cation to act as a crosslinker, necessary with the current nickel‐coordination chemistry. Therefore, increasing the ion exchange capacity (IEC) for these types of AEMs, important for enhancing conductivity, also increased the crosslink density. The low conductivity and brittleness seen in this work demonstrated the need to develop non‐crosslinking metal‐complexes. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018 , 56, 328–339     

Comb-shaped 2-Methylimidazolium Poly(arylene ether sulfone) Anion Exchange Membranes with High Alkaline Stability

A series of comb-shaped poly(arylene ether sulfone)s containing pendant 2-methyl-3-alkylimidazolitun group(ImPAES-Cx,x=1,6,10)was prepared and characterized as novel anion exchange membranes.These Im-PAES-Cx membranes were obtained by benzylic bromination and imidazolium functionalization.The characteristic nano-phase separation structure was formed in membranes with longer alkyl side chains,as confmned by small-angle X-ray scattering.The nano-phase separation structures endowed ImPAES-Cx membranes with improved ionic conductivity,dimensional stability(at least 60% decrease water uptake and swelling ratio at 60℃)and mechanical properties,together with excellent alkaline stability.Especially,ImPAES-C6 membranes possessed enhanced hydroxide conductivity and chemical stability simultaneously.These results suggest that it is a feasible strategy to introduce appropriate length of alkyl side chains into anion exchange membranes(AEMs)to improve the performance.     

Highly Conductive Anion‐Exchange Membranes from Microporous Tröger's Base Polymers

The development of polymeric anion‐exchange membranes (AEMs) combining high ion conductivity and long‐term stability is a major challenge for materials chemistry. AEMs with regularly distributed fixed cationic groups, based on the formation of microporous polymers containing the V‐shape rigid Tröger's base units, are reported for the first time. Despite their simple preparation, which involves only two synthetic steps using commercially available precursors, the polymers provide AEMs with exceptional hydroxide conductivity at relatively low ion‐exchange capacity, as well as a high swelling resistance and chemical stability. An unprecedented hydroxide conductivity of 164.4 mS cm^?1 is obtained at a relatively a low ion‐exchange capacity of 0.82 mmol g^?1 under optimal operating conditions. The exceptional anion conductivity appears related to the intrinsic microporosity of the charged polymer matrix, which facilitates rapid anion transport.     

复合型季铵化聚醚砜碱性聚合物电解质膜的制备及性能

利用4,4?-二氟二苯砜(DFDPS)、9,9?-双(4-羟苯基)芴(BHPF)、2,2?-二(4-羟基苯基)丙烷(双酚A)及4,4?-(六氟异丙叉)双酚(双酚AF)为原料,制备了2类具有不同主链刚性的聚醚砜材料.以聚醚砜及其氯甲基化产物按一定质量比采用溶液浇铸法,制备了2类新型共混阴离子交换膜,并避免了成膜过程中的相分离现象.在高分子主链上通过引入双酚芴(BQPAES系列)及双酚A(BQPES系列)结构调整主链的刚性,探讨了主链刚性对性能的影响;表征了共混膜的离子交换容量(IEC)、吸水及溶胀特性与离子电导率,并考察了它们的耐水解和耐碱稳定性.结果表明:2种聚合物相容性良好,共混膜质地均一,柔韧透明,吸水率和溶胀率适中,均随着温度的升高逐渐增加、随着聚醚砜含量增加逐渐减小;在90?C时,离子电导率最高达到89 m S/cm.经过沸水处理24 h后,均保持高机械强度,失重率低于5%;经2 mol/L的Na OH溶液30?C处理168~240 h后离子电导率仍可保持65%~80%.由于含双酚芴结构的高分子主链具有更高的刚性,在类似IEC条件下,BQPAES膜显示了比BQPES膜更好的尺寸稳定性和化学稳定性,同时维持了较高的电导率水平.由此表明,复合处理及适度提高高分子主链的刚性,有利于提高膜的性能.     

Highly alkaline stable anion exchange membranes from nonplanar polybenzimidazole with steric hindrance backbone

The anion exchange membranes (AEMs) with both high ionic conductivity and alkali stability are always the research focus of the AEM fuel cells. Here, a novel nonplanar polymer for AEMs manufacture, mPBI‐TP‐x‐R, with excellent hydroxide stability and satisfactory processability is reported for the first time. The serial mPBI‐TP‐x resins with steric hindrance were prepared by copolymerization among 3,3′,4,4′‐tetraaminobiphenyl, isophthalic acid and tetraphenyl‐terephthalic acid (TP) in different ratios under microwave condensation. The copolymers mPBI‐TP‐x were quaternized at N1/N3‐sites of benzimidazole unit in backbone with alkyl groups (R?CH₃, C₂H₅, n‐C₃H₇, or n‐C₄H₉) to prepare soluble ionomers, and the corresponding membranes in hydroxyl ion form were prepared by a solution casting method and subsequent ion‐exchange process. The chemical structure of all membranes was characterized using FTIR and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The properties of ion exchange capacity, water uptake, swelling ratio, tensile strength, ionic conductivity, and alkaline stability were measured. Among the prepared membranes, the mPBI‐TP‐15%‐(n‐Bu) exhibited the excellent alkaline stability (only degradation ca. 5% under 1M NaOH aqueous solution at 60 °C for 800 h) and satisfactory OH^? conductivity (46.66 mS/cm at 80 °C). The current research provides a useful exploration to commercial application of alkaline fuel cell. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2019 , 57, 1087–1096     

Effect of ammonium groups on the properties and alkaline stability of poly(arylene ether)‐based anion exchange membranes

Five kinds of ammonium groups functionalized partially fluorinated poly(arylene ether) block copolymer membranes were prepared for investigating the structure–property relationship as anion exchange membranes (AEMs). Consequently, the pyridine (PYR)‐modified membrane showed the highest alkaline and hydrazine stability in terms of the conductivity, water uptake, and dry weight. The chloromethylated precursor block copolymers were reacted with amines, such as trimethylamine, N‐butyldimethylamine, 1‐methylimidazole, 1,2‐dimethylimidazole, and PYR to provide the target quaternized poly(arylene ether)s. The structures of the polymers, as well as model compounds and oligomers were well characterized by ¹H NMR spectra. The obtained AEMs were subjected to water uptake and hydroxide ion conductivity measurements and stabilities in aqueous alkaline and hydrazine media. The pyridinium‐functionalized quaternized polymers membrane showed the highest alkaline and hydrazine stability with minor losses in the conductivity, water uptake, and dry weight. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 383–389     

Durable Multiblock Poly(biphenyl alkylene) Anion Exchange Membranes with Microphase Separation for Hydrogen Energy Conversion

Anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs) and water electrolysis (AEMWE) show great application potential in the field of hydrogen energy conversion technology. However, scalable anion exchange membranes (AEMs) with desirable properties are still lacking, which greatly hampers the commercialization of this technology. Herein, we propose a series of novel multiblock AEMs based on ether-free poly(biphenyl ammonium-b-biphenyl phenyl)s (PBPA-b-BPPs) that are suitable for use in high performance AEMFC and AEMWE systems because of their well-formed microphase separation structures. The developed AEMs achieved outstanding OH⁻ conductivity (162.2 mS cm⁻¹ at 80 °C) with a low swelling ratio, good alkaline stability, and excellent mechanical durability (tensile strength >31 MPa and elongation at break >147 % after treatment in 2 M NaOH at 80 °C for 3750 h). A PBPA-b-BPP-based AEMFC demonstrated a remarkable peak power density of 2.41 W cm⁻² and in situ durability for 330 h under 0.6 A cm⁻² at 70 °C. An AEMWE device showed a promising performance (6.25 A cm⁻² at 2 V, 80 °C) and outstanding in situ durability for 3250 h with a low voltage decay rate (<28 μV h⁻¹). The newly developed PBPA-b-BPP AEMs thus show great application prospects for energy conversion devices.     

Basicity‐dependent properties of anion conducting membranes consisting of iminium cations for alkaline fuel cells

To design novel anion‐conducting polymer electrolyte membranes (AEMs), this paper proposes a basicity index (BI) that is defined by the ion‐exchange ratios of AEMs from the OH^? to Cl^? forms in a neutral aqueous solution as a parameter for Arrhenius basicity (dissociation constant). Using a radiation‐induced graft polymerization technique, three iminium cations are introduced into fluorinated polymer films. The BI of the iminium‐containing AEMs is less than that of a conventional ammonium‐type AEM. The conductivity and water uptake correlate positively with the BI, whereas the thermal and chemical stabilities correlate negatively with the BI. The dependence on the BI stems from the stabilization of the iminium hydroxide in proportion to the basicity of the original diaza‐compounds, resulting in a decrease in conductivity and water uptake with keeping higher thermal and chemical stabilities. Notably, ion conductivity is sufficient and water uptake is less in AEMs with a medium BI. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2019 , 57, 503–510     

基于阳离子交换基团的阴离子交换膜研究进展

近年来,阴离子交换膜燃料电池的发展受到了广泛关注。 开发具有碱稳定性能优异、电导率高的阴离子交换膜材料成为了研究的热点。 阴离子交换膜(AEM)主要由聚合物骨架和阳离子基团组成,除了聚合物骨架结构,离子交换基团是影响膜碱稳定性和电导率的重要因素,因此,设计离子基团是提高膜性能的重要手段之一。 本文综述了近年来功能基团分别为季铵、胍基、咪唑鎓盐、季鏻、金属配合物、N-螺环季铵盐、哌啶和吡咯等阳离子交换基团的AEM的研究进展,其中包括不同种类阳离子交换基团的AEM的结构,碱稳定性能和OH^-电导率,同时对于含有阳离子交换基团的AEM的结构设计进行了分析和展望。     

Highly Water Resistant Anion Exchange Membrane for Fuel Cells

For anion exchange membranes (AEMs), achieving efficient hydroxide conductivity without excessive hydrophilicity presents a challenge. Hence, new strategies for constructing mechanically strengthened and hydroxide conductive (especially at controlled humidity) membranes are critical for developing better AEMs. Macromolecular modification involving ylide chemistry (Wittig reaction) for the fabrication of novel AEMs with an interpenetrating polymer network structure is reported. The macromolecular modification is cost effective, facile, and based on a one‐pot synthesis. AEM water uptake is reduced to 3.6 wt% and a high hydroxide conductivity (69.7 mS cm⁻¹, 90 °C) is achieved simultaneously. More importantly, the membrane exhibits similar tensile strength (>35 MPa) and comparable flexibility in both dry and wet states. These AEMs could find further applications within anion exchange membrane fuel cells with low humidity or photoelectric assemblies.