Preliminary evaluation of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/monoethanolamine/adipic acid composite membranes for direct methanol fuel cell applications

A series of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/monoethanolamine/adipic acid (SPEEK/MEA/AA) composite membranes are prepared and investigated to assess their possibility as proton exchange membranes in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). A preliminary evaluation shows that introducing MEA and AA into SPEEK matrix decreases the thermal stability of membrane. However, the degradation temperatures are still above 260 °C, satisfying the requirement for fuel cell operation. Compared with the pure SPEEK membrane, the composite membranes exhibit not only lower water uptake and swelling ratios but also better mechanical property and oxidative stability. Noticeably, the methanol diffusion coefficient of the composite membranes decrease significantly from 3.15 × 10^?6 to 0.76 × 10^?6 cm²/s with increasing MEA and AA content, accompanied by only a small sacrifice in proton conductivity. Although both the methanol diffusion coefficient and the proton conductivity of composite membranes are lower than those of pure SPEEK and Nafion® 117 membranes, their selectivity (conductivity/methanol diffusion coefficient) are higher. In addition, the composite membranes show excellent stability in aqueous methanol solution. The good thermal and chemical stability, low swelling ratio, excellent mechanical property, low methanol diffusion coefficient, and high selectivity make the use of these composite membranes in DMFCs quite attractive. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 45: 2871–2879, 2007     

Novel sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone)/silica coated carbon nanotubes high‐performance composite membranes for direct methanol fuel cell

The major risk of using carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to modify proton exchange membranes (PEMs) in fuel cells is possible short‐circuiting due to the excellent electrical conductivity of CNTs. In this article, silica‐coated CNTs (SiO₂@CNTs) were successfully prepared by a simple sol–gel process and then used as a new additive in the preparation of sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK)‐based composite membranes. The insulated and hydrophilic silica coated on the surface of CNTs not only eliminated the risk of short‐circuiting, but also enhanced the interfacial interaction between CNTs and SPEEK, and hence promoted the homogeneous dispersion of CNTs in the SPEEK matrix. Moreover, compared to the methanol permeability of the pure SPEEK membrane (3.42 × 10^?7 cm² s^?1), the SPEEK/SiO₂@CNT composite membrane with a SiO₂@CNT loading of 5 wt% exhibits almost one order of magnitude decrease of methanol crossover, while the proton conductivity still remained above 10^?2 S cm^?1 at room temperature. The obtained results expose the possibility of SPEEK/SiO₂@CNT membranes to be served as high‐performance PEMs in direct methanol fuel cells. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sulfonated Poly(ether ether ketone) and Poly(ethylene glycol) Diacrylate Based Semi-Interpenetrating Network Membranes for Fuel Cells

Polymer electrolyte membranes are prepared from novel semi-interpenetrating polymer network material where the sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) is the linear polymer and the poly (ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) is the cross-linking constituent. The semi-IPN is prepared by in situ polymerization of PEGDA in the presence of sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone). SPEEK is prepared by direct sulfonation of commercial PEEK (Gatone? 1100) by reported procedures. SPEEK with degree of sulfonation 63% (calculated from FT-NMR) is selected as the base membrane and different semi-IPN membranes were prepared by varying the PEGDA and SPEEK ratio. The degree of sulfonation of SPEEK and the formation of semi-IPN were confirmed by spectroscopy studies. The various semi-IPN membranes were characterized for ion-exchange capacity, water uptake, hydrolytic stability, proton conductivity and thermal stability for evaluating the suitability of these membranes for fuel cells. The proton conductivity of the membranes decreased with increasing PEGDA content. The Semi-IPN membranes exhibited conductivities (30°C) from 0.018 S/cm to 0.006 S/cm. These interpenetrating network membranes showed higher hydrolytic stability than the pure SPEEK membrane. This study shows that semi-IPN membranes based on PEGDA and SPEEK can be viable candidates for electrolyte membranes.     

不同磺化度下的磺化聚醚醚酮对全钒储能液流电池性质影响的研究

本文报道了采用浓硫酸作为磺化剂,成功合成了不同磺化度下的聚醚醚酮(PEEK)膜,并深入研究了磺化条件包括磺化时间和磺化剂的用量对所获薄膜性能的影响,获得了在不同磺化度（DS）下SPPEK膜的离子交换容,含水率,机械性能,质子电导率等参数,特别测定了在全钒液流电池工作条件下钒离子(Ⅳ)渗透率,首次为该类液流储能电池使用价廉质优的质子交换膜提供了基础实验数据。室温条件下的实验结果如下：1）磺化12小时后,膜的磺化度46%,含水量为28%,钒离子(Ⅳ)选择性最佳（钒离子渗透率为1.2×10-7 cm2/min-1,是Nafion117 (2.9×10-6 cm2/min-1)的1/24）,其质子电导率只有0.02 S/cm;2）磺化96小时其磺化度达79%的膜,质子电导率达0.16 S/cm,是Nafion117 (0.10S/cm) 的1.6倍, 但其机械性能最差;3）与Nafion117膜相比,磺化在36到48小时的SPPEK膜其机械力学性能好,薄膜的钒离子渗透率、离子交换容IEC、质子导电率和含水率高,且对钒离子的选择性佳,尤其价格仅为Nafion膜的1/13,是理想的Nafion膜的代替物,可望直接应用于全钒氧化还原液流（VRB）电池中。本文还讨论了磺化时间和不同磺化剂量对膜的性质的影响。     

全钒液流电池用磺化聚醚醚酮/锂皂石质子膜的结构及性能

通过溶液流延法制备了磺化聚醚醚酮/锂皂石(SPEEK/Lap)复合膜, 对其物理化学性质、 机械性能、 化学稳定性及单电池性能进行了测试. 在SPEEK基质中引入的Lap有效改善了复合膜的质子传导率、 溶胀率和机械性能. 当Lap添加量(质量分数)从0.2%增到1.5%时, 复合膜的质子传导率随之增加(19.9~23.6 mS/cm). SPEEK/Lap-0.2复合膜的自放电时间为57.2 h, 是Nafion 117膜的2.4倍和纯SPEEK膜的1.5倍. 在80 mA/cm ²电流密度下, SPEEK/Lap-0.2复合膜的电压效率(VE, 86.5%)和能量效率(EE, 84.0%)明显高于Nafion 117膜(VE: 83.8%, EE: 80.7%)和纯SPEEK膜(VE: 81.4%, EE: 78.9%). 同时, SPEEK/Lap-0.2复合膜经100次充放电循环测试后具有良好的循环稳定性和结构稳定性.     

磺化聚醚醚酮/三羧基丁烷膦酸锆复合质子交换膜的研究

通过在磺化聚醚醚酮(SPEEK)中掺杂1,2,4-三羧基丁烷-2-膦酸锆(Zr(PBTC))制备出SPEEK/Zr(PBTC)复合质子交换膜.结果表明,与纯SPEEK膜相比,Zr(PBTC)的掺杂能降低复合膜的吸液量及甲醇透过系数,且随着Zr(PBTC)含量的增加,这种作用越趋明显.在室温至80℃范围内,复合膜的甲醇透过系数在10-7cm2.s-1数量级上,远小于Nafion115膜.在饱和湿度下,当温度大于90℃时,含40wt%Zr(PBTC)的复合膜电导率超过Nafion115膜,并在160℃时达到0.36S.cm-1.使用温度的提高及在高温下的高电导率表明该复合膜适合在高温DMFC中使用.     

Polyaniline decorated graphene oxide on sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) membrane for direct methanol fuel cells application

In direct methanol fuel cells (DMFC), methanol crossover is a major issue which has reduced the performance of polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) for energy generation. In this study, graphene oxide (GO) and conductive polyaniline decorated GO (PANI-GO) were used as additives in fabrication of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) nanocomposite PEM membrane to reduce methanol crossover. PANI-GO was synthesized by in situ polymerization method and the formation of PANI coated GO nanostructures was confirmed by surface morphology and crystallinity analysis. The membrane morphology and topography analysis confirmed that GO and PANI-GO were well dispersed on the surface of SPEEK membrane. 0.1 wt% PANI-GO modified SPEEK nanocomposite membrane exhibited the highest water uptake and ion exchange capacity of 40% and 1.74 meq g^?1, respectively. The oxidative stability of the nanocomposite membranes also improved. Lower methanol permeability of 4.33 × 10^?7 cm^?2S^?1 was noticed for 0.1 wt% PANI-GO modified SPEEK membrane. PANI-GO modified SPEEK membrane enhanced the proton conductivity, which was due to the existence of acidic and hydrophilic group present in PANI and GO. PANI-GO modified SPEEK membrane held higher selectivity of 1.94 × 10⁴ S cm^?3 s^?1. Overall, these studies revealed that PANI-GO modified SPEEK membrane is a potential material for DMFC applications.     

DMFC用PES/SPEEK共混阻醇质子交换膜

将磺化聚醚醚酮(SPEEK, 磺化度DS为68.3%)和聚醚砜(PES)两种聚合物共混制得PES/SPEEK共混膜. DSC研究表明两种聚合物之间具有较好的相容性, 因而共混膜均匀致密, 未发生大尺度相分离. PES的混入能有效降低膜的溶胀度及甲醇透过系数. 纯SPEEK 膜40 ℃时在1 mol•L−1甲醇水溶液中溶胀度达到160%, 45 ℃时就完全溶解, 而含30%(w)PES的共混膜在80 ℃时的溶胀度仅有15%. 室温下含20%−30%(w)PES的共混膜的甲醇透过系数为1×10−7 cm2•s−1左右, 比Nafion 115膜的透过系数小一个数量级. 尽管80 ℃下30%(w)PES/SPEEK共混膜的电导率与Nafion 115膜相当, 但由于共混膜的厚度比Nafion 115膜小1/3左右, 膜电阻较小, 因而其电池性能比Nafion 115膜的好.     

Crosslinking of sulphonated poly (ether ether ketone) using aromatic bis(hydroxymethyl) compound

2,6-Bis(hydroxymethyl)-4-methyl phenol and 1,4-bis(hydroxymethyl) benzene have been used as crosslinkers in sulphonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK DS 65%, IEC 1.84 mequiv./g) for the preparation of proton exchange membranes (PEMs). Crosslinking of SPEEK has been achieved by thermally activated bridging of the polymer chain with the hydroxymethyl group of crosslinker through condensation reaction with sulphonic acid group. The physico-chemical properties of uncrosslinked and crosslinked membrane were evaluated in terms of ion exchange capacity (IEC), water uptake, ionic conductivity and mechanical properties. The crosslinked membrane showed controlled swelling, ionic conductivity of 25–50 mS/cm at 80 °C and good mechanical properties. The chemical stability of the crosslinked membranes was studied by Fenton's test. The % loss in weight and changes in physico-chemical properties of the treated membranes were determined.     

磺化聚醚醚酮与壳聚糖共混制备直接甲醇燃料电池用质子交换膜

给出了不同磺化度下的磺化聚醚醚酮(SPEEK)用作质子交换膜的一系列性能,另外提出了一种新型的酸碱共混质子交换膜,其中,磺化聚醚醚酮和壳聚糖分别被选为酸性、碱性高分子电解质,并对所制备的质子交换膜的相关性能如质子传导性,甲醇渗透性,吸水率以及膜溶胀性、热稳定性等进行了表征,结果表明此种新型复合膜尽管在质子传导性能方面有所下降,阻醇性能改变不大,但是膜溶胀性和吸水率方面有了较大的改善.磺化度为71.4%的SPEEK与壳聚糖以5∶1摩尔比共混制备的质子交换膜,其性质可以与商品化的Nafion 117相媲美,有望在甲醇燃料电池中得到应用.     

Proton and methanol transport behavior of SPEEK/TPA/MCM-41 composite membranes for fuel cell application

This paper reports proton and methanol transport behavior of composite membranes prepared for use in the direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC). The composite membranes were prepared by embedding various proportions (10–30 wt.%) of inorganic proton conducting material (tungstophosphoric acid (TPA)/MCM-41) into sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) polymer matrix. The results indicate that the proton conductivity of the membranes increases with increasing loading of solid proton conducting material. The highest conductivity value of 2.75 mS/cm was obtained for the SPEEK composite membrane containing 30 wt.% solid proton conducting material (50 wt.% TPA in MCM-41). The methanol permeability and crossover flux were also found to increase with increasing loading of the solid proton conducting material. Lowest permeability value of 5.7 × 10⁻⁹ cm² s⁻¹ was obtained for composite membrane with 10 wt.% of the solid proton conducting material (40 wt.% TPA in MCM-41). However, all the composite membranes showed higher selectivity (ratio between the proton conductivity and the methanol permeability) compared to the pure SPEEK membrane. In addition, the membranes are thermally stable up to 160 °C. Thus, these membranes have potential to be considered for use in direct methanol fuel cell.     

Structural and transport phenomena of urocanate-based proton carrier in sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) membrane composite

Proton transport is one of crucial phenomena in electrolytic part highly considered to overcome a limit in fuel cell efficiency improvement. Proton conducting organic electrolyte was modeled and simulated at atomistic level of calculation by doping of butyl urocanate (C4U), a composite material with imidazole substructure, with sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) amorphous membrane at various working temperature. Molecular dynamics simulations were used to investigate structural and dynamics characteristic of C4U in the membrane comparing with the SPEEK-hydronium membrane model as a control. From simulations, thermal effect on water and proton carriers cluster surrounding the sulfonate groups was explored. At higher temperature, the more transport dynamics of C4U ions in SPEEK membranes were found than that of hydronium ions in the control system. Likewise, phase separation of hydrophobic and hydrophilic parts was taken into consideration here. A critical role of the enhancing proton conductivity by increasing the diffusion coefficient at temperature beyond C4U melting point in composite polymer membrane was emphasized. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2018 , 56, 1625–1635     

Nanostructured Proton-Conducting Membranes for Fuel Cell Applications

Summary: Composite polymer membranes based on sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone) (SPSU) containing benzimidazole derivatives (BIzD) and heteropolyacid for use in fuel cells were prepared. The effects of both the increment in BBIzD component and the procedure of mixing on the morphology and proton conductivity were investigated. The heteropolyacid (HPA) extracted in water decreased with the addition of BBIzD in the composite. The interactions developed among the sulfonate groups, the benzimidazole derivatives and the HPA were verified by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). The network of interactions established in the composite membrane based on SPSU containing benzimidazole derivatives and phosphotungstic acid (HPW) in the ratio of SPSU/BBIzC₄(8:1) in equivalents and SPSU/HPW(7:3) in mass resulted in a very high proton conductivity at 110 °C.     

Characterization and performance of proton exchange membranes for direct methanol fuel cell: Blending of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) with charged surface modifying macromolecule

Modification of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) membrane was attempted by blending charged surface modifying macromolecule (cSMM). The modified membrane was tested for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) application; i.e. a SPEEK/cSMM blend membrane was compared to a SPEEK membrane and a Nafion 112 membrane for the thermal and mechanical stability, methanol permeability, and proton conductivity. Thermal and mechanical stability of the blended membrane were slightly reduced from the SPEEK membrane but still higher than the Nafion 112 membrane. The blend membrane was found to be promising for DMFC applications because of its lower methanol diffusivity (2.75 × 10⁻⁷ cm² s⁻¹) and higher proton conductivity (6.4 × 10⁻³ S cm⁻¹), than the SPEEK membrane. A plausible explanation was given for the favorable effect of cSMM blending.     

SPEEK/PES-C、SPEEK/SPES-C共混质子交换膜研究

通过在磺化聚醚醚酮(SPEEK,DS=61.68%)中分别混入酚酞型聚醚砜(PES-C)、磺化酚酞型聚醚砜(SPES-C,DS=53.7%)制备出SPEEK/PES-C、SPEEK/SPES-C共混质子交换膜.结果表明,共混的两种聚合物之间均具有较好的相容性.PES-C、SPES-C的混入能有效降低膜的溶胀及甲醇透过,且随着共混量的增加,这种作用越趋明显.纯SPEEK膜在75℃左右溶解,而SPEEK/PES-C(30wt%)、SPEEK/SPES-C(30wt%)共混膜在80℃时溶胀度仅为22.5%、26.32%.在室温至80℃范围内,纯SPEEK及共混膜的甲醇透过系数都在10-7cm2.s-1数量级上,远小于Nafion115膜.在饱和湿度下,温度大于90℃时,SPEEK/PES-C(20wt%)共混膜电导率超过Nafion115膜;温度大于110℃时,SPEEK/SPES-C(30wt%)共混膜电导率与Nafion115膜相当,达到0.11S.cm-1.高电导率,低透醇系数以及明显提高了的可使用温度表明该类共混膜有望在DMFC中使用.     

Sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/polyaniline composite proton-exchange membrane

Sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK) was prepared by sulfonation of commercial Victrex^@ PEEK and degree of sulfonation was found to be about 44.5% by ¹H NMR. Sulfonated PEEK/polyaniline composite membranes, in order to prevent methanol crossover, were prepared by chemical polymerization of a thin layer of polyaniline (PANI) in the presence of a high oxidant concentration on a single face modification. FTIR and PANI coating density studies confirmed the loading of PANI in sulfonated PEEK membrane matrix. PANI composite membranes with different polymerization time were prepared and subjected to thermogravimetric analysis as well as electrochemical and methanol permeability study to compare with sulfonated PEEK and Nafion 117 membrane. Ion-exchange capacity, water uptake, proton transport numbers and proton conductivities for different PANI composite sulfonated PEEK (SPEEK) membranes were found to be dependent on the coating density of the PANI in the membrane matrix and were slightly lower than that of Nafion 117 membrane. Methanol permeability of these membranes (especially SPEEK/PANI-1.5) was about four times lower than Nafion 117 membrane. Among the all SPEEK membranes synthesized in this study, SPEEK-1.5 appears to be more suitable for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) application considering optimum physicochemical and electrochemical properties, thermal stability as well as very low methanol permeability. Above all, the cost-effective and simple fabrication technique involved in the synthesis of such composite membranes makes their applicability quite attractive.     

Investigation of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone sulfone)/heteropolyacid composite membranes for high temperature fuel cell applications

The sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone sulfone) (SPEEKS)/heteropolyacid (HPA) composite membranes with different HPA content in SPEEKS copolymers matrix with different degree of sulfonation (DS) were investigated for high temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cells. Composite membranes were characterized by Fourier transfer infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). FTIR band shifts suggested that the sulfonic acid groups on the copolymer backbone strongly interact with HPA particles. SEM pictures showed that the HPA particles were uniformly distributed throughout the SPEEKS membranes matrix and particle sizes decreased with the increment of copolymers' DS. The holes were not found in SPEEKS‐4/HPA30 (consisting of 70% SPEEKS copolymers with DS = 0.8 and 30% HPA) composite membrane after composite membranes were treated with boiling water for 24 h. Thermal stabilities of the composite membranes were better than those of pure sulfonated copolymers membranes. Although the composite membranes possessed lower water uptake, it exhibited higher proton conductivity for SPEEKS‐4/HPA30 especially at high temperature (above 100 °C). Its proton conductivity linearly increased from 0.068 S/cm at 25 °C to 0.095 S/cm at 120 °C, which was higher than 0.06 S/cm of Nafion 117. In contrast, proton conductivity of pure SPEEKS‐4 membrane only increased from 0.062 S/cm at 25 °C to 0.078 S/cm at 80 °C. At 120 °C, proton conductivity decreased to poor 0.073 S/cm. The result indicated that composite membranes exhibited high proton conductivity at high temperature. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 1967–1978, 2006     

Sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/poly(vinylpyrrolidone) acid–base polymer blends for direct methanol fuel cell application

Acid–base polymer blends for polymer electrolyte membranes have been prepared by blending sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) with poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) to reduce methanol uptake and to decrease methanol permeability while maintaining high proton conductivity. The acid‐base interaction occurring on the sulfonic acid group and on the tertiary amide group was characterized by FTIR and DMA. As the composition of PVP lowered than 20 wt % in the blends, the acid–base interaction causes great reduction on methanol uptake and the methanol permeability; however, the proton conductivity is still high. In this work, membrane–electrode assemblies (MEAs) have been prepared for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) from both blend membrane and Nafion 117. DMFC single cell performance was also evaluated. Results confirmed that SPEEK (with the degree of sulfonation (DS) = 69%) blended with PVP (M_n = 1,300,000) with a ratio of 80/20 (w/w) exhibits higher open‐circuit voltages (OCV) and lower polarization loss than those of Nafion 117. These acid–base blends will be suitable for DMFC application. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 565–572, 2006     

自交联型磺化聚醚醚酮质子交换膜的合成

以含3,3'-二烯丙基双酚 A 结构单元的聚醚醚酮为基膜材料, 通过自由基加成反应在取代基上引入磺酸基团, 合成侧链型磺化聚醚醚酮(SPEEK)质子交换膜. 用傅里叶变换红外(FTIR)光谱、 核磁共振氢谱(¹H NMR)、 热重分析(TG)和扫描电子显微镜(SEM)等方法对 SPEEK 的结构进行表征. 实验结果表明, 巯基丙磺酸被接枝在聚醚醚酮侧基上, SPEEK 膜具有明显的亲水疏水微相分离形貌, 磺酸基团相互聚集形成离子通道. SPEEK 膜离子交换容量为 2.12 mmol/g, 钒离子渗透率为 1.54×10^-6 cm²/min, 低于Nafion117 膜的钒离子渗透率, 阻钒能力优于 Nafion117 膜. 以 SPEEK-4 膜组装电池的自放电时间约为130 h, 长于 Nafion117 膜的 66 h. 电池充放电循环 50 次, SPEEK-4 膜的库仑效率、 电压效率和能量效率没有明显降低, 显示出良好的稳定性.     

Preparation and characterization of proton-conducting sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/phosphatoantimonic acid composite membranes

The solid proton conductor, phosphatoantimonic acid, HSbP₂O₈ · H₂O was prepared by ion exchange of the corresponding potassium salt. The composite membranes of SPEEK with up to 40 wt% of HSbP₂O₈ · H₂O were prepared by introducing the solid proton conductor from the aqueous suspension. The composite membranes were characterized using FT-IR, powder X-ray diffraction, SEM, DSC/TGA. Thermal stability of the composite membranes was slightly lower than that of SPEEK. The composite membranes had higher water uptake when compared with SPEEK and the membranes exhibited controlled swelling up to 50 °C. The proton conductivity of the membranes was measured under 100% relative humidity up to 70 °C. The composite membranes showed enhanced proton conductivity up to 20 wt% of HSbP₂O₈ · H₂O and the conductivity was reduced with further increase of HSbP₂O₈ · H₂O loading. A maximum of four-fold increase in proton conductivity at 70 °C was observed for the composite membrane with 20 wt% of solid proton conductor.