Issue 16, 2023

The parameter space for scalable integration of atomically thin graphene with Nafion for proton exchange membrane (PEM) applications

Abstract

Selective proton permeation through atomically thin graphene while maintaining impermeability to even small gas atoms i.e. He or hydrated ions, presents potential for advancing proton exchange membranes (PEMs) across a range of energy conversion and storage applications. The incorporation of graphene into state-of-the-art proton conducting polymers e.g. Nafion can enable improvements in PEM selectivity as well as mitigate reactant crossover. The development of facile integration approaches are hence imperative. Here, we systematically study the parameters influencing the integration of monolayer graphene synthesized via scalable chemical vapor deposition (CVD) on polycrystalline Cu foils with a model proton conducting polymer (Nafion) via a facile hot-press process. The hot-press time (t), temperature (T) and pressure (P) are found to not only influence the quality of graphene transfer but can also introduce additional defects in the CVD graphene. Graphene transfers to Nafion performed below the optimum temperature (Topt ∼ 115 °C) remain patchy with ruptures, while transfers above Topt showed defect features, and transfers near Topt show minimal ruptures and defect features. We demonstrate Nafion|graphene|Nafion sandwich membranes using the optimal transfer conditions that allow for ∼50% reduction in hydrogen crossover (∼0.17 mA cm−2) in comparison to Nafion control membranes (∼0.33 mA cm−2) while maintaining comparable proton area specific resistance < 0.25 Ω cm2 (areal conductance ∼ 4–5 S cm−2), that are adequate to enable practical PEM applications such as fuel cells, redox flow batteries, and beyond.

Graphical abstract: The parameter space for scalable integration of atomically thin graphene with Nafion for proton exchange membrane (PEM) applications

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
19 Apr. 2023
Accepted
03 Jūl. 2023
First published
25 Jūl. 2023
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

Mater. Adv., 2023,4, 3473-3481

The parameter space for scalable integration of atomically thin graphene with Nafion for proton exchange membrane (PEM) applications

P. Chaturvedi, N. K. Moehring, T. Knight, R. Shah, I. Vlassiouk and P. R. Kidambi, Mater. Adv., 2023, 4, 3473 DOI: 10.1039/D3MA00180F

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