Synthesis and characterization of poly(arylene ether ketone)s bearing pendant sulfonic acid groups for proton exchange membrane materials

Yang Zhang, Gang Zhang, Ying Wan, Chengji Zhao, Ke Shao, Hongtao Li, Miaomiao Han, Jing Zhu, Shuai Xu, Zhongguo Liu, Hui Na

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

36 Scopus citations

Abstract

A bisphenol monomer (2,5-dimethoxy)phenylhydroquinone was prepared and further polymerized to obtain poly(arylene ether ketone) copolymers containing methoxy groups. After demethylation and sulfobutylation, a series of novel poly(arylene ether ketone)s bearing pendant sulfonic acid group (SPAEKs) with different sulfonation content were obtained. The chemical structures of all the copolymers were analyzed by 1H NMR and 13C NMR spectra. Flexible and tough membranes with reasonably good mechanical properties were prepared. The resulting side-chain-type SPAEK membranes showed good dimensional stability, and their water uptake and swelling ratio were lower than those of conventional main-chain-type SPAEK membranes with similar ion exchange capacity. Proton conductivities of these side-chain-type sulfonated copolymers were higher than 0.01 S/cm and increased gradually with increasing temperature. Their methanol permeability values were in the range of 1.97 × 10 -7-5.81 × 10-7 cm2/s, which were much lower than that of Nafion 117. A combination of suitable proton conductivities, low water uptake, low swelling ratio, and high methanol resistance for these side-chain-type SPAEK films indicated that they may be good candidate material for proton exchange membrane in fuel cell applications.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)5824-5832
Number of pages9
JournalJournal of Polymer Science, Part A: Polymer Chemistry
Volume48
Issue number24
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 15 2010

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Polymers and Plastics
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Materials Chemistry

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