Sulfonated poly(aryl ether ketone)s containing naphthalene moieties obtained by direct copolymerization as novel polymers for proton exchange membranes

A series of sulfonated poly(aryl ether ketone)s (SPAEKs) were prepared by aromatic nucleophilic polycondensation of 2,6‐dihydroxynaphthalene with 5,5′‐carbonyl‐bis(2‐fluorobenzenesulfonate) and 4,4′‐difluorobenzophenone. The structure and degree of sulfonation (DS) of the SPAEKs were characterized using ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The experimentally observed DS values were close to the expected values derived from the starting material ratios. The thermal stabilities of the SPAEKs were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis, which showed that in acid and sodium salt forms they were thermally stable in air up to about 240 and 380 °C, respectively. Transparent membranes cast from the directly polymerized SPAEKs exhibited good mechanical properties in both dry and hydrated states. The dependence of water uptake and of membrane swelling on the DS at different temperatures was studied. SPAEK membranes with a DS from 0.72 to 1.60 maintained adequate mechanical properties after immersion in water at 80 °C for 24 h. The proton conductivity of SPAEK membranes with different degrees of sulfonation was measured as a function of temperature. The proton conductivity of the SPAEK films increased with increased DS, and the highest room temperature conductivity (4.2 × 10^?2 S/cm) was recorded for a SPAEK membrane with a DS of 1.60, which further increased to 1.1 × 10^?1 S/cm at 80 °C. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 2866–2876, 2004     

Orientational Ordering of the Near-Surface Layers of Nitrobenzene

Two types of absorption centers, one being related to monomers and the other to dimers, have been revealed by the method of statistical analysis of the normalized absorption spectra of a superthin interlayer of nitrobenzene of variable thickness formed on activated surfaces of quartz and barium fluoride and measured for different thicknesses of the interlayer. On a decrease in the interlayer thickness the concentration of dimers increases.     

Sulfonated poly(aryl ether ether ketone ketone)s containing fluorinated moieties as proton exchange membrane materials

A series of sulfonated poly(aryl ether ether ketone ketone)s statistical copolymers with high molecular weights were synthesized via an aromatic nucleophilic substitution polymerization. The sulfonation content (SC), defined as the number of sulfonic acid groups contained in an average repeat unit, could be controlled by the feed ratios of monomers. Flexible and strong membranes in sodium sulfonate form could be prepared by the solution casting method, and readily transformed to their proton forms by treating them in 2 N sulfuric acid. The polymers showed high T_gs, which increased with an increase in SC. Membranes prepared from the present sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone ketone) copolymers containing the hexafluoroisopropylidene moiety (SPEEKK‐6F) and copolymers containing the pendant 3,5‐ditrifluoromethylphenyl moiety (SPEEKK‐6FP) had lower water uptakes and lower swelling ratios in comparison with previously prepared copolymers containing 6F units. All of the polymers possessed proton conductivities higher than 1 × 10^?2 S/cm at room temperature, and proton conductivity values of several polymers were comparable to that of Nafion at high relative humidity. Their thermal stability, oxidative stability, and mechanical properties were also evaluated. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 2299–2310, 2006     

2,3,3-trimethyl-3h-pyrrolo[3,2-c]quinolines and polymethine dyes based on them

2,3,3-Trimethyl-3H-pyrrolo[3,2-c]quinoline and its 8-methoxy derivative were obtained from methyl isopropyl ketone 4-quinolylhydrazones. These bases form quaternary salts at the azine nitrogen atom, from which polymethine dyes were obtained. The changes in the absorption spectra of the dyes in solutions with various acidities were examined.Translated from Khimiya Geterotsiklicheskikh Soedinenii, No. 7, pp. 948–951, July, 1982.     

Planar oscillations and dissipative heating of viscoelastic plates with a piezoeffect

Planar oscillations of thin piezoplates are important within the context of using this type of piezoelements as resonator frequency filters, frequency stabilizers, elements of piezotransformers, and other technological devices. In the publications currently known one usually considers piezoplates with elastic material behavior and linear governing equations. By their mechanical nature, however, a number of piezoelements, particularly piezoceramics, are viscoelastic, which, depending on the loading conditions, can lead to substantial dissipative heating of the piezoelement and confine its operation [3]. The use of piezopolymers and their composites raises particularly important issues of dissipative heating. At the present time the behavior of a piezoelement including heating can be described by the theory of thermoelectroviscoelasticity (TEVE) [2, 3], including the interaction between electromechanical and thermal fields. The complexity of TEVE problems leads to the necessity of using numerical methods to solve them, with the finite element method (FEM) being widely used in recent years. The present study is devoted to stating and solving TEVE problems concerning thin piezoceramic plates by the FEM. We treat a thin piezoceramic plate, confined by an arbitrary contour L and polarized across its thickness. A harmonic potential difference e^it is supplied to electrodes located on the smooth boundaries of the plate. Convective heat exchange with the surrounding media of temperatures T _k ^s and T^s is implemented at the contour surfaces and boundaries free of electrodes. The heat transfer coefficients equal, respectively, _k ^T and ^T. The initial plate temperature is T₀. The smooth boundary are free of mechanical loading. The mechanical forces at the contour surfaces are distributed symmetrically with respect to the mean plane of the plate.S. P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics, Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, Kiev (Ukraine). Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika, Vol. 30, No. 2, pp. 69–76, February 1994.     

Characteristics of an “orbitron” ion source with a two-wire anode

An orbitron-type ion source is considered, with a cylindrical cathode and two wire anodes, operating at hydrogen pressures of 0.07–0.5 Pa with a firing voltage of 1–5 kV and mean discharge current of several mA. In pulsed high-current operation, a peak current of 25 A can be achieved with 2–3-sec pulses. The ion current is extracted through two longitudinal slits in the cathode and reaches 30% of the discharge current. The source performance is analyzed as a function of the gas pressure and geometrical parameters.Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 11, pp. 35–39, November, 1991.     

Biscyanines from isomeric benzodipyrrolenines

Biscyanines and their corresponding mother monocyanines were obtained from the three isomeric benzodipyrrolenines. Splitting of the absorption band of the mother monocyanine into two new bands, viz., a long-wave and a short-wave band, is observed for the biscyanines. The degree of splitting of the maxima for a para orientation of the chromophores in the benzene ring is about twice that for the meta position.Translated from Khimiya Geterotsiklicheskikh Soedinenii, No. 5, pp. 618–620, May, 1971.     

Fluorenyl-containing sulfonated poly(aryl ether ether ketone ketone)s (SPFEEKK) for fuel cell applications

A series of fluorenyl-containing sulfonated poly(aryl ether ether ketone ketone)s (SPFEEKK) were synthesized via aromatic nucleophilic substitution polymerization. The sulfonation content (SC) was controlled by the feed ratios of sulfonated and nonsulfonated monomers. Flexible and strong membranes in the sulfonic acid form were obtained from cast membranes in the sodium salt forms by treatment with acid. The thermal properties, water uptake, swelling ratio, water state, oxidative stability, proton conductivity and methanol permeability were investigated. All the polymers had proton conductivities greater than 1 × 10⁻² S/cm at room temperature, and the conductivity values of m-SPFEEKK-80 and p-SPFEEKK-80 were up to 1.86 × 10⁻¹ and 1.78 × 10⁻¹ S/cm at 100 °C. This series of polymers also possessed good dimensional stability in water and low methanol crossover.