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Sulfonated poly(ether imide) and poly(ether sulfone) blends for direct methanol fuel cells. II. Membrane preparation and performance
Author(s) -
Shu YaoChi,
Chuang FuSheng,
Tsen WenChin,
Chow JingDong,
Gong Chunli,
Wen Sheng
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.27575
Subject(s) - membrane , materials science , nafion , polymer chemistry , ether , ionomer , methanol , thermogravimetric analysis , sulfonic acid , methanol fuel , chemical engineering , imide , polymer blend , ultimate tensile strength , polymer , chemistry , composite material , organic chemistry , copolymer , electrochemistry , electrode , engineering , biochemistry
This study describes the preparation and characterization of new ionomer blend membranes containing sulfonated poly(ether imide) (SPEI) and poly(ether sulfone) (PES). Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that the obtained blend membranes were more thermally stable than the parent SPEI. As the PES content increased, the extent of membrane swelling by water decreased, and the oxidative stability was significantly increased by the specific interactions between PES and the sulfonic acid groups. Under both dry and wet conditions, the tensile strength of all the blend membranes was larger than that of the pure SPEI membrane and Nafion 112 because of the reinforcing effect of PES. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy indicated that the blend membranes became more compact as the PES content increased, and this reduced the methanol diffusion. The blend membranes with PES contents below 50% showed adequate proton conductivity. The lower permeability of the blend membranes compared with the Nafion 112 membrane resulted in higher methanol resistance. This considerable reduction in methanol crossover revealed the feasibility of the blend membranes as promising electrolytes for direct methanol fuel cells. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008