• Membrane Journal
• /
• v.13 no.1
• /
• pp.29-36
• /
• 2003

A characterization of the permeation and separation using single salt solution was carried out with charged composite membranes. Various charged composite membranes were fabricated by blending an ionic polymer with a nonionic polymer in different ratios. In this study, sodium alginate, chitosan and poly(vinyl alcohol) were employed as anionic, cationic and nonionic polymers, respectively. The permeation and separation behaviors of the aqueous salt solutions have been investigated through the charged composite membranes with various charge densities. As the content of the ionic polymer increased in the membrane, the hydrophilicity of the membrane increased, and pure water flux and the solution flux increased correspondingly, indicating that the permeation performance through the membrane is determined mainly by its hydrophilicity. Electrostatic interaction between the charged membrane and ionic solute molecules, that is, Donnan exclusion, was observed to be attributed to salt rejection to a greater extent, and molecular sieve mechanism was effective for the separation of salts under a similar electrostatic circumstance of solutes.

• KEPCO Journal on Electric Power and Energy
• /
• v.2 no.1
• /
• pp.127-131
• /
• 2016

Polymer electrolyte membrane for unitized regenerative fuel cells requires high proton conductivity, high dimensional stability, low permeability, and low cost. However, DuPont's Nafion which is a commercial polymer electrolyte membrane has high permeability, high cost, and decreasing proton conductivity and dimensional stability over $80^{\circ}C$. To address these problems, sulfonated poly ether ether ketone (sPEEK) which is a low cost hydrocarbon polymer is selected as matrix polymer for the preparation of polymer electrolyte membrane. In addition, composite membrane with improved proton conductivity and dimensional stability is prepared by introducing sulfonated graphene oxide (sGO). The fundamental properties of polymer electrolyte membranes are analyzed by investigating membrane's water content, dimensional stability, proton conductivity, and morphology. The cell test is conducted to consider the possibility of application of sPEEK/sGO composite membrane for an unitized regenerative fuel cell.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2010.11a
• /
• pp.85.2-85.2
• /
• 2010

There is widespread effort to develop polymer membranes in place of Nafion for high temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell(PEMFC). In our study, SiO2 membranes are arranged by electrospinning method. For impregnation solution, the modified sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)(SPEEK) polymer is prepared from sulfonation, sulfochlorination, partial reduction and lithiation reaction. The modified polymer is cross-linked with 1,4-diiodobetane in NMP solvent and then blended with Heteropoly acid(HPA). The characterization of membranes is confimed by FT-IR, Thermogravimetry(TGA), water uptake test and single cell performance test for PEMFC, etc. The composite membrane shows satisfactory thermal and mechanical properties. Beside, The membrane exhibits good ion exchange capacity and high proton conductivity. As a result, The composite membrane is promising as an alternative membrane in high temperature PEMFC.

• Membrane Journal
• /
• v.17 no.1
• /
• pp.37-43
• /
• 2007

The effect of anionic and cationic exchange polymer layer on the chronopotentiometry (CP) and current voltage curves (I-V) of charged composite membrane are investigated. Also, the ion transport near the interface between electrolyte and ionic exchange polymer membranes (anionic and cationic ones) and charged mosaic polymer composite membrane is studied. The results show that both anionic and cationic polymer exchange membranes exhibit lower voltage drop over range of applied current density and possess favorable industrial application potentials, especially at low KCl concentration. While the charged mosaic polymer composite membrane didn't show any current-voltage change, irrespective to the type and the concentration of used electrolyte. CP and I-V measurements are effectively used to give some fundamental understanding for ion transport behavior of ion exchange polymer membrane near the interlace.

• Membrane Journal
• /
• v.6 no.4
• /
• pp.265-272
• /
• 1996

The (polymer/carrier) composite membranes for separating the metallic ion have been prepared by the water cast-method. The morphology of these membranes was affected by the physical properties of the spreading solution. The surface tension of the (polymer/18-crown-6) composite solution was decreased with increasing the concentration of 18-crown-6 compound and the surface tension of polymer solution decreased the following order PVC>PS>CA. The viscosity of CA solution decreased with increasing the contents of the 18-crown-6 compound, but PVC and PS solutions showed no significance changes according as the concentration of 18-crown-6 compound. In the composite solutions, the spreading ability was improved by' the cyclic 18-crown-6 molecules which acted as an electric buffer and diminished the intermolecular force between the polymer chains. The (polymer/18-crown-6) composite membrane was more uniform than that of the mono polymer membrane on the coagulation state of polymer, and the top and bottom sides of membrane showed also the more smooth structure according as the concentration increment of 18-crown-6 molecule.

• Proceedings of the Membrane Society of Korea Conference
• /
• 2003.07a
• /
• pp.37-40
• /
• 2003

Mesoporous zeolite - heteropolyacid-polymer hybrid membrane was prepared by sol-gel processes to make a proton conducting membrane. The crystallinity of mesoporous zeolite in composite membrane was increased with contents of heteropolyacid. Proton conductivity obtained from impedance measurements increases with contents of heteropolyacid, about 10$^{-3}$ S/cm in ca. 1.5 Wt% heteropolyacid.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
• /
• v.40 no.2
• /
• pp.159-166
• /
• 2003

The preparation method for composite membranes of high temperature operation above $100^{\circ}C$ for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs ) was presented, using perfluorosulfonylfluoride Nafion resin and mordenite, in addition to the physical properties, proton conductivity and single cells performance for it. The composite membranes were fabricated via melting of Nafion resin with various mordenite content. As the increase of mordenite content, at high temperature range, proton conductivity of the composite membrane increased due to the late dehydration rate of existent water in the mordenite. Also, from the result of the current-voltage relationship for single cells under $130^{\circ}C$ operation condition, the composite membrane cell with l0 wt% mordenite content showed better performance than that of the others over the entire current density range. This result indicated that the existent water in the composite membrane with l0 wt% mordenite content was higher than that with the others, thereby maintains its conductivity. Based upon the results of experiments, therefore, a Nafion/mordenite composite membrane prepared by this work is thought to be a satisfactory polymer electrolyte membrane for PEMFC operation above $100^{\circ}C$.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• v.32 no.2
• /
• pp.605-608
• /
• 2011

Hybrid composite membranes were prepared by coating poly(ethylene oxide) and $SiO_2$ particles onto the porous polypropylene nonwoven matrix. Gel polymer electrolytes prepared by soaking the hybrid composite membranes in an organic electrolyte solution exhibited ionic conductivities higher than $1.1{\times}10^{-3}Scm^{-1}$ at room temperature. Dyesensitized solar cell (DSSC) employing the hybrid composite membrane with PEO and 10 wt % $SiO_2$ exhibited an open circuit voltage of 0.77 V and a short circuit current of 10.78 $mAcm^{-2}$ at an incident light intensity of 100 $mWcm^{-2}$, yielding a conversion efficiency of 5.2%. DSSC employing the hybrid composite membrane showed more stable photovoltaic performance than that of the DSSC assembled with liquid electrolyte.

• Membrane Journal
• /
• v.33 no.6
• /
• pp.416-426
• /
• 2023

In this study, hindered amine-grafted graphene oxide (HA-GO) with antioxidant properties was prepared and incorporated into Nafion-based composite membranes as an effective filler material for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell applications. HA-GO was synthesized via a ring-opening reaction between amine groups in 4-amino-2, 2, 6, 6-tetramethyl piperidine and epoxy groups on the surface of GO. Nafion-based composite membranes containing different weight contents of HA-GO were fabricated to compare the polymer electrolyte membrane properties with those of the pure Nafion membrane. The composite membranes with HA-GO were found to have better mechanical properties, chemical stability, and proton conductivity than the pure Nafion membrane. In particular, the conductivity retention behavior confirmed by the decrease in proton conductivity after Fenton's test of the composite membranes was better than that of the pure Nafion membrane due to the incorporation of HA-GO with effective antioxidant properties.

• Membrane Journal
• /
• v.32 no.6
• /
• pp.427-441
• /
• 2022

Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) serving as a separator that can prevent the permeation of unreacted fuels as well as an electrolyte that selectively transports protons from the anode to the cathode has been considered a key component of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). The perfluorinated sulfonic acid-based PEMs, represented by Nafion®, have been commercialized in PEMFC systems due to their high proton conductivity and chemical stability. Nevertheless, these PEMs have several inherent drawbacks including high manufacturing costs by the complex synthetic processes and environmental problems caused by producing the toxic gases. Although numerous studies are underway to address these drawbacks including the development of sulfonated hydrocarbon polymer-based PEMs (SHP-PEMs), which can easily control the polymer structures, further improvement of PEM performances and durability is necessary for practical PEMFC applications. Therefore, this study focused on the various strategies for the development of SHP-PEMs with outstanding performance and durability by 1) introducing cross-linked structures, 2) incorporating organic/inorganic composites, and 3) fabricating reinforced-composite membranes using porous substrates.