Issue 15, 2024

High-performance and durable anion-exchange membrane water electrolysers with high-molecular-weight polycarbazole-based anion-conducting polymer

Abstract

Anion-exchange membrane water electrolysis is a promising technology for economical green hydrogen production; however, the corresponding industrial applications are limited by the lack of reliable polymer electrolytes. To address this problem, we developed chain-extender-derived high-molecular-weight hexyltrimethylammonium-tethered polycarbazoles (HQPC-TMA-x's) with compelling membrane characteristics, including high ionic conductivity, mechanical robustness, and high alkaline stability. Owing to its polycarbazole backbone, HQPC-TMA-x alleviated the problems due to ionomer adsorption on the electrode. In the single-cell configuration, the best-performing polymer (HQPC-TMA-2.4) achieved an unprecedented current density of 14.6 A cm−2 at 2.0 V with a Ni–Fe alloy anode and low-cost cell hardware, additionally showing superior pure-water-electrolysis and direct-seawater-electrolysis performances. HQPC-TMA-2.4 exhibited in situ durability at a high current density of 1.0 A cm−2 for 1000 h with low irreversible degradation rates of 52 and 6 μV h−1 for platinum group metal (PGM) and PGM-free cells, respectively, demonstrating the reliability of this polymer in practical settings.

Graphical abstract: High-performance and durable anion-exchange membrane water electrolysers with high-molecular-weight polycarbazole-based anion-conducting polymer

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
04 Mar 2024
Accepted
22 Apr 2024
First published
30 Apr 2024

Energy Environ. Sci., 2024,17, 5399-5409

High-performance and durable anion-exchange membrane water electrolysers with high-molecular-weight polycarbazole-based anion-conducting polymer

S. Kim, S. H. Yang, S. Shin, H. J. Cho, J. K. Jang, T. H. Kim, S. Oh, T. Kim, H. Han and J. Y. Lee, Energy Environ. Sci., 2024, 17, 5399 DOI: 10.1039/D4EE01003E

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