Issue 47, 2023

Morphology and cell performance of poly(fluorene)-based anion exchange membranes for water electrolysis: effect of backbone core structure

Abstract

For the satisfactory ionic conductivity of anion exchange membranes (AEMs), it is crucial to develop a membrane with a precisely manipulated morphology. Here, we report AEM morphology changes according to core structure in novel aryl ether-free poly(fluorene) AEMs with alkyl spacers on biphenyl, fluorene, and spirobifluorene polymer backbones constructed via the Suzuki cross-coupling reaction. Morphological and conformational analyses of these AEMs were undertaken using small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering (GIWAXS). As a result, PFPB-QA, which had the lowest glass transition temperature due to the limited rotation of biphenyl, exhibited the most oriented structure and well-connected ion transport channels, thereby exhibiting high conductivity (>125 mS cm−1 at 80 °C) and high alkaline stability (>96% in 1 M KOH at 80 °C). Moreover, a PFPB-QA water electrolysis cell showed a cell performance of 2.68 A cm−2 at 2.0 V and a degradation rate of 1.07% during a 500 h durability test at 70 °C in 1 M KOH.

Graphical abstract: Morphology and cell performance of poly(fluorene)-based anion exchange membranes for water electrolysis: effect of backbone core structure

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
19 Seb 2023
Accepted
16 Nov 2023
First published
16 Nov 2023

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2023,11, 25938-25944

Morphology and cell performance of poly(fluorene)-based anion exchange membranes for water electrolysis: effect of backbone core structure

H. Lim, J. Jeong, D. H. Lee, S. Myeong, G. Shin, D. Choi, W. B. Kim, S. M. Choi and T. Park, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2023, 11, 25938 DOI: 10.1039/D3TA05669D

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements