Synthesis and characterization of a new type of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone ketone)s for proton exchange membranes

A novel series of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone ketone)s (SPEEKKs) were prepared by aromatic nucleophilic polycondensation with different ratios of 1,3‐bis(3‐sodium sulfonate‐4‐fluorobenzoyl)benzene to 1,3‐bis(4‐fluorobenzoyl)benzene. ¹H‐NMR spectroscopy was used to confirm the degrees of sulfonation (DS) of the polymers. Thermal stabilities of the SPEEKKs in acid form were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), which showed that SPEEKKs were excellently thermally stable at high temperatures. SPEEKK polymers can be easily cast into tough membranes. Both of proton conductivity and methanol diffusion coefficient have been tested in this article. Other properties of the SPEEKK membranes were investigated in detail. The results show that the SPEEKK membranes are promising in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) application. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010     

Synthesis and characterization of poly(aryl ether ketone) copolymers containing (hexafluoroisopropylidene)-diphenol moiety as proton exchange membrane materials

Sulfonated poly(aryl ether ketone)s (SPAEK) copolymers were synthesized by aromatic nucleophilic polycondensation from 4,4′-(hexafluoroisopropylidene)-diphenol, 1,3-bis(4-fluorobenzoyl)benzene and di-sulfonated difluorobenzophenone. The copolymers exhibited good thermal and oxidative stability. The SPAEK membranes with sulfonic acid content (SC) ranging from 0.6 to 1.16 maintained adequate mechanical strength after immersion in water at 80 °C for 24 h. The proton conductivities of the SPAEK films increased with SC and temperature, reaching values above 3.3×10⁻² S/cm at 80 °C for SC≥0.76. Tensile strength measurement indicated that SPAEK membranes with SC 0.76, 0.98 and 1.16 are tough and strong at ambient conditions. Consequently, these materials are promising as proton exchange membranes (PEM) for fuel cells operated at medium temperatures.     

Random sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone) and sulfonated poly(arylene ether ketone) membranes for fuel cell applications

In this study, sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone) (SPAES) and sulfonated poly(arylene ether ketone) (SPAEK) were randomly synthesized, employing a presulfonation process. This presulfonation process resulted in a more controlled and reproducible sulfonation level. The respective polymers were prepared using 2,2-Bis(4-hydroxyphenyl) propane at 50% molar ratio, which also provided some membrane elasticity. The resulting polymers, each had 25% of the block containing the sulfonic domains (SPAES A 25 and SPAEK A 25). Better conductive membranes were achieved for the random sulfone polymers than for the random ketone polymers, with values, respectively, of 0.24 and 0.07 S cm⁻¹ at 80°C. The lower proton conductivity from the ketone-based polymer was compensated with very low methanol permeability (0.25 × 10⁻⁶ cm² s⁻¹) and outstanding oxidative stability. The selectivity of both polymer membranes exceeded the reported values for the state-of-the-art Nafion® 117 and other commercially available options. Both polymer membranes, with their unique combination of ionic domains, elastomeric blocks, and resulting morphology, could be viable candidates for fuel cell applications.     

Palladium and platinum sorption on a thiocarbamoyl‐derivative of chitosan

Novel proton exchange membranes are solvent‐cast from N,N‐dimethylacetamide (DMAc) solutions of the crosslinked poly(arylene ether ketone) copolymer with pendant carboxylic acid group (C‐SPAEK) via poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) with different amounts. These membranes are formed as a result of physical and chemical crosslinking. In this study, ¹H‐NMR and FTIR have been used to confirm the chemical structures of the copolymers. Mechanical and thermal properties, swelling and proton conductivity are affected by the crosslinker (PEG) content in the copolymers. Compared to the noncrosslinked C‐SPAEK membrane, the crosslinked membranes become more flexible and greatly reduced water uptake and swelling ratio with only slight sacrifice in proton conductivities. And the crosslinked membranes keep higher proton conductivities without a sharply decrease at higher temperature. These results show that the crosslinked membranes have potential applications as proton exchange membranes for fuel cell. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010     

Sulphonated Poly(ether ether ketone) Proton Exchange Membranes for Fuel Cell Applications

Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are promising new power sources for automotive and portable devices. Nafion® is the currently used membrane in PEMFCs. Although these membranes show high proton conductivity and excellent chemical stability, their high cost makes them unpractical for commercial purposes. Sulphonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) ionomers were synthesized using chlorosulphonic acid as the sulphonating agent in dichloromethane medium. Homogeneous proton-conducting membranes were developed from the obtained SPEEK by solvent casting method. Membranes were assessed for their suitability in fuel cell applications. The extent of sulphonation was controlled by varying the reaction time, concentration of polymer, and concentration of sulphonating agent. The SPEEK membranes exhibit degree of sulphonation from 10 to 66%, ion exchange capacity from 0.29 to 1.92 meq/g and maximum water and methanol uptake up to 54 and 22%, respectively, at 25°C. The membranes were characterized by FTIR to confirm sulphonation, and DSC and TGA to investigate the thermal stability. The proton conductivities of such membranes were found to be excellent in the order of 10^?2 S/cm in the fully hydrated condition at room temperature as measured by impedance spectroscopy. The durability of the membranes was also tested. The study revealed the possibility of a cheaper alternative membrane for use in PEMFC.     

Influence of casting conditions on the properties of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone ketone)/phosphotungstic acid composite proton exchange membranes

The sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone ketone)/phosphotungstic acid (SPEEKK/PWA) composite membranes were researched for proton exchange membranes. The effect of casting condition on the properties of membranes was studied in detail. The study showed that the casting condition has great influence on the membrane properties because of the hydrogen bond between the SPEEK and PWA and the interaction between the SPEEKK and dimethylformamide (DMF). The PWA particles are well crystallized on the surface when the velocity of the solvent volatilization is very slow under the SEM. The study will favor further research on excellent composite membranes for proton exchange membrane fuel cells. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 103: 4020–4026, 2007     

Sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/epoxy/phenol novolac blend proton‐exchange membranes with low methanol permeability

A crosslinked epoxy [4,4′‐diglycidyl‐(3,3′,5,5′‐tetramethylbiphenyl) epoxy resin (TMBP)], cured by phenol novolac (PN), was introduced into a sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) membrane (ion‐exchange capacity = 2.0 mequiv/g) with a casting‐solution, evaporation, and heating crosslinking method to improve the mechanical properties, dimensional stability, water retention, and methanol resistance. By Fourier transform infrared analysis, the interactions between the sulfonic acid groups and hydroxyl groups in the blend membranes were confirmed. The microstructure and morphology of the blend membranes were investigated with atomic force microscopy. As expected, the blend membranes showed excellent mechanical properties, good thermal properties (thermal stability above 200°C), lower swelling ratios (1.4% at 25°C and 7.0% at 80°C), higher water retention (water diffusion coefficient = 9.8 × 10^?6 cm²/s), and a lower methanol permeability coefficient (3.6 × 10^?8 cm²/s) than the pristine SPEEK membrane. Although the proton conductivity of the blend membranes decreased, a higher selectivity (ratio of the proton conductivity to the methanol permeability) was obtained than that of the pristine SPEEK membrane. The results showed that the SPEEK/TMBP/PN blend membranes could have potential use as proton‐exchange membranes in direct methanol fuel cells. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Modified Sulfonated Poly(ether ether ketone) Based Mixed Matrix Membranes for Direct Methanol Fuel Cells

Mixed matrix membranes based on zeolite 4A‐methane sulfonic acid (MSA)‐sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) are evaluated as a potential polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) for direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). Ion‐exchange capacity, sorption of water, and water–methanol mixture, proton conductivity, and methanol permeability for the mixed‐matrix membranes have been extensively investigated. The mixed‐matrix membranes are also characterized for their cross‐sectional morphology, mechanical, and thermal properties. DMFCs employing SPEEK‐MSA (20 wt.%) blend, zeolite 4A (4 wt.%)‐SPEEK‐MSA (20 wt.%) mixed matrix membranes deliver peak power densities of 130 and 159 mW cm^–2, respectively; while a peak power density of only 95 mW cm^–2 is obtained for the DMFC employing pristine SPEEK membrane at 70 °C. The results showed that these SPEEK based mixed matrix membranes exhibit higher DMFC performance and lower methanol permeability in comparison to Nafion‐117 membrane.     

Preparation and investigation of acid–base composite membranes with modified graphitic carbon nanosheets for direct methanol fuel cells

The ethylenediamine-modified graphite oxide (EGO)-doped sulfonated poly (arylene ether ketone) (SPEEK) composite membranes have been prepared and developed for fuel cell applications in the present work. The base-modified EGO improves the dispersion of inorganic nanosheet in the polymer matrix and enhances proton conductivity by creating continuous conduction pathways. Furthermore, the methanol barrier property also be enhanced due to the nanosheet block the methanol-transport channels. EGO-filled membranes display improved dimensional stability, proton conductivity, and ethanol permeability than those using SPEEK control and graphite oxide (GO)-filled membranes. In the direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs), the SPEEK/EGO-1.5 membrane displays the highest current density of 395.9 mA/cm² at 60°C, which is 1.6- and 1.4-fold higher than that of SPEEK (254.0 mA/cm²) and SPEEK/GO membrane (292.6 mA/cm²).     

Basicity‐based screening of aniline derivative for composite proton exchange membranes

The aim of this study was to find a suitable aniline derivative to develop composite sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) membranes and detail evaluation of their physico‐ and electrochemical properties. The hypothesis was high basicity of the aniline derivatives could form good composite membranes with better physicochemical and electrochemical properties. To assess the basicity we measured the zeta potentials of the polymers and correlated them with ion‐exchange capacities, water uptakes, transport numbers, water‐diffusion coefficients, conductivities, and methanol permeabilities. The obtained values of zeta potentials at pH 7 were 6.52, ?14.66, ?25.17, and ?28 for SPEEK/polynaphthalene (PNAPH), SPEEK/polyanisidine (PANIS), SPEEK/polyaniline (PANI), and SPEEK/polyxylindine (PXYL), respectively supports the hypothesis and strongly suggests polyaniline derivative's basicity‐dependent properties. Of the four derivatives (PNAPH, PANIS, PANI, and PXYL), the SPEEK/PXYL composite membrane had the lowest methanol permeability of 1 × 10^?4 cm²/s and highest proton conductivity of 161 mS/cm. These values are far better than the neat SPEEK and SPEEK/PANI composite. The suitability of SPEEK/PXYL can be explained by the high basicity of the PXYL composite membrane, which leads to the formation of effective Debye spheres, meaning that the ionic complex can interact with surrounding hydronium ions and form hydrophilic channels resulting in high proton conductivity and low methanol permeability. These results suggest that SPEEK/PXYL is a highly suitable membrane for methanol fuel cells or other electrochemical applications. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 43978.     

Cross‐linked Poly(arylene ether ketone) Proton Exchange Membranes with High Ion Exchange Capacity for Fuel Cells

Sulfonated poly(arylene ether ketone) (SPAEK) possessing the pendant carboxylic acid groups was synthesized. The carboxylic acid groups of SPAEK were reacted with a cross‐linking reagent to prepare a cross‐linked membrane with a high ion exchange capacity (IEC), a high oxidative stability, and an excellent mechanical strength. The cross‐linking hindered the mobility of the polymer chains and thus strongly affected the water uptake and the methanol permeability of the membranes. Also, as the cross‐linker used in this study bore sulfonic acid groups, cross‐linking did not lead to a noticeable loss of the proton conductivity. The cross‐linked SPAEK membrane with 20% cross‐linking density, CSPAEK‐20% membrane, exhibited a high proton conductivity of 0.045 S cm^–1 associated with a high IEC value of 1.78 mmol g^–1 but a low methanol permeability of 4.3 × 10^–7 cm² s^–1. The CSPAEK‐20% membrane also showed excellent cell performance and oxidation resistance.     

A convenient crosslinking method for sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) membranes via friedel–crafts reaction using 1,6‐dibromohexane and aluminum trichloride

In this study, sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) was very efficiently crosslinked via a Friedel–Craft reaction using 1,6‐dibromohexane and AlCl₃. The resulting crosslinked SPEEK (c‐SPEEK) membranes exhibited improved dimensional stability, thermal and chemical stability, and mechanical strength with slight reduction in the elongation. The methanol permeability was reduced by approximately two orders of magnitude by the crosslinking reaction. The proton conductivities of c‐SPEEK membranes were greater than Nafion‐212 in the temperature range of 30–90°C. Overall, this new crosslinking method can be conveniently and efficiently applicable to most aromatic hydrocarbon polymer membranes. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40695.     

Direct synthesis of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone ketone)s (SPEEKKs) proton exchange membranes for fuel cell application

A series of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone ketone)s (SPEEKK)s based membranes have been prepared and evaluated for proton exchange membranes (PEM). The membranes show very good thermal and mechanical stabilities. The structures of membranes were studied with AFM. The membranes show very good proton conductive ability (25 °C: 0.007-0.04 s/cm) and methanol resistance (25 °C: 7.68×10⁻⁸ to 5.75×10⁻⁷ cm²/s). The methanol diffusion coefficients of membranes are much lower than that of Nafion (2×10⁻⁶ cm²/s). The SPEEKKs membranes show very good respective in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFC) usages.     

直接甲醇燃料电池用新型质子交换膜的研究

以聚醚醚酮(PEEK)为原料,浓硫酸为磺化剂制备了不同磺化度的磺化聚醚醚酮(SPEEK)膜,以及磺化聚醚醚酮与聚乙烯醇(PVA)、正硅酸乙酯(TEOS)、磷钨酸的复合膜.分别对膜的电导率、阻醇性能和吸水率进行了研究.随着SPEEK膜磺化度的增大,膜的电导率有所提高,然而甲醇渗透系数也增大,膜的机械强度明显降低.SPEEK膜的吸水率低于Nafion 115膜,而PVA膜的吸水率则过高.     

Effect of dispersion state of Cloisite15A® on the performance of SPEEK/Cloisite15A nanocomposite membrane for DMFC application

The introduction of 2,4,6‐triaminopyrimidine (TAP) into sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK)/Cloisite15A® nanocomposite membranes were investigated for the purpose of maintaining low methanol permeability and suppressing swelling in direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC). SPEEK with 63% of degree of sulfonation (DS) was prepared by sulfonation of PEEK. Cloisite15A (7.5 wt %) along with various weight loading of TAP was incorporated into SPEEK matrix via solution intercalation method. The effect of TAP loading on the SPEEK/Cloisite15A/TAP morphology was studied. The beneficial impact of the SPEEK/Cloisite15A/TAP morphology on the physicochemical properties of the membrane was further discussed. Swelling behavior, ion exchange capacity (IEC), proton conductivity, and methanol permeability of the resultant membranes were determined as a function of Cloisite15A and TAP loadings. Uniform distribution of Cloisite15A particles in the SPEEK polymer matrix in the homogenous SPEEK/Cloisite15A/TAP nanocomposite membranes was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy and X‐ray diffraction. The water uptake of the SPEEK nanocomposite membranes decreased dramatically in the presence of TAP. The significant selectivity of SP/7.5/7.5 nanocomposite membranes could indicate a potential feasibility as a promising electrolyte for DMFC. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Sulfonated poly(ether sulfone)/silica composite membranes for direct methanol fuel cells

A series of sulfonated poly(ether sulfone) (SPES)/silica composite membranes were prepared by sol–gel method using tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) hydrolysis. Physico–chemical properties of the composite membranes were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope–energy dispersive X‐ray (SEM–EDX), and water uptake. Compared to a pure SPES membrane, SiO₂ doping in the membranes led to a higher thermal stability and water uptake. SEM–EDX indicated that SiO₂ particles were uniformly embedded throughout the SPES matrix. Proper silica loadings (below 5 wt %) in the composite membranes helped to inhibit methanol permeation. The permeability coefficient of the composite membrane with 5 wt % SiO₂ was 1.06 × 10^?7 cm²/s, which was lower than that of the SPES and just one tenth of that of Nafion® 112. Although proton conductivity of the composite membranes decreased with increasing silica content, the selectivity (the ratio of proton conductivity and methanol permeability) of the composite membrane with 5 wt % silica loading was higher than that of the SPES and Nafion® 112 membrane. This excellent selectivity of SPES/SiO₂ composite membranes could indicate a potential feasibility as a promising electrolyte for direct methanol fuel cell. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010     

The Preparation of Metal–Organic-Framework/Boron Phosphate Hybrid Materials for Improved Performances in Proton Exchange Membranes

New types of metal–organic framework based hybrid materials are designed and prepared, which involving the hybridization of various content of boron phosphate (BPO₄) with the precursor of HKUST-1. The structure of obtained HKUST-1/BPO₄ hybrid materials (HB) is fully investigated, and then applied to construct sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) based proton exchange membranes (SPEEK/HB). Owing to effective interactions between hybrid materials and SPEEK matrix, the achieved composite membranes reflect a considerable improvement in mechanical and thermal stability, oxidative stability, methanol permeation, and proton conductivity. In particular, the tensile strength of SPEEK/HB-20 composite membrane is 41.3 MPa, which is 1.5 times higher than pristine SPEEK, and the methanol permeability reduced to one-third of SPEEK at the same time. The SPEEK/HB-10 displays the highest proton conductivity of 37.4 mS cm⁻¹ at 80 °C, which is obviously higher than pristine SPEEK. These results reveal that the hybridization of HKUST-1 with BPO₄ provide a promising candidate in the modification of proton exchange membranes (PEMs), and this strategy also possess great application potential in other types of MOFs-based hybrid materials.     

Effect of clay modification on the structure and properties of sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/clay nanocomposites

Sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK)/clay hybrid membranes were prepared using three types of commercially available clays, the sodium montmorillonite (IC), hydrophobic organo‐clay with long alkyl chains (OC), and organo‐clay with carboxylic acid end groups (HC). It was found that the SPEEK/HC hybrid membranes achieved the best clay dispersion, with the exfoliation of the clay nano‐platelets when the filler loading was < 10 wt%. The incorporation of the carboxylic acid groups in clay layers also improved the connectivity between the ionic clusters in the membrane, resulting in higher proton conductivity without compromising the dimensional stability of membranes. The selectivity higher than the pristine SPEEK membranes was obtained for the SPEEK/HC hybrid membranes at low filler loading (<10 wt%), with higher proton conductivity and similar methanol permeability. POLYM. COMPOS., 37:2632–2638, 2016. © 2015 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Solution‐blown SPEEK/POSS nanofiber–nafion hybrid composite membranes for direct methanol fuel cells

This study aims to develop novel hybrid composite membranes (NHMs) by impregnating Nafion solution into the porous sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (SPEEK/POSS) nanofibers (NFs). The composite membrane was prepared by solution blowing of a mixture of SPEEK/POSS solution. The characteristics of the SPEEK/POSS NFs and the NHMs, including morphology, thermal stability, and performance of membrane as PEMs, were investigated. The performance of NHMs was compared with that of Nafion117 and SPEEK/Nafion composite membranes. Results showed that the introduction of POSS improved the proton conductivity, water swelling, and methanol permeability of membranes. A maximum proton conductivity of 0.163 S cm^?1 was obtained when the POSS content was 6 wt % at 80°C, which was higher than that of Nafion117 and SPEEK/Nafion. NHMs could be used as proton exchange membranes (PEMs) for fuel cell applications. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42843.     

Effects and properties of poly(arylene ether benzonitrile)s of various molecular weights blended with sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)

Poly(arylene ether benzonitrile) (PAEBN) was synthesized with 2,6‐dichlorobenzonitrile and biphenol. PAEBNs with various molecular weights (MWs), 1,640,000 and 185,000 g/mol, were synthesized by control of the stoichiometry of the monomers and were blended with sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK). The effects of MW on the water uptake, swelling, methanol permeability, and proton conductivity of the SPEEK/PAEBN blend membranes were investigated. The molecular mobility of the SPEEK/PAEBN blends was also examined in this study. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008