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.