Sulfonamide-Sulfonimide Copolymers as Novel, Fluorine-Lean Type of Proton Exchange Membranes for Fuel Cell Application

Brinke L, Wagner M, Thiele S, Kerres J (2024)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2024

Journal

Chemistry - A European Journal Wiley

Book Volume: 30

Article Number: e202402025

Journal Issue: 56

DOI: 10.1002/chem.202402025

Abstract

In this work, a novel type of fluorine-lean proton exchange membranes is presented, using sulfonamide-sulfonimide functional groups for ion conduction. These groups are constructed on a polystyrene backbone for simple and cost-efficient usage as well as rapid scalability. The polymer is further tailored by adjusting the sulfonamide functionality with various end-groups, namely pentafluorophenyl, 4-fluorophenyl, butyl and octyl groups. These groups affect the pKa, leading to pKa values of 5.7 for the pentafluorophenyl substitution and pKa 10.5 for the alkyl chain. The glass transition temperature of the sulfonamide homopolymers can be reduced from Tg=151 °C (Pentafluorophenyl) to 49 °C (Octyl), making the ionomer more flexible at room temperature. The combination of the non-swelling sulfonamide further mitigates the high water uptake of the sulfonimide while maintaining the nominal ion exchange capacity. This combination leads to extremely high proton conductivities with up to σ=283 mS cm−1 at room temperature, which is clearly outperforming Nafion and approaches values for acid doped systems. This approach can pave the way to a novel type of ion conducting class in proton exchange membrane fuel cells.

Involved external institutions

Forschungszentrum Jülich / Research Centre Jülich (FZJ) DE Germany (DE)

How to cite

APA:

Brinke, L., Wagner, M., Thiele, S., & Kerres, J. (2024). Sulfonamide-Sulfonimide Copolymers as Novel, Fluorine-Lean Type of Proton Exchange Membranes for Fuel Cell Application. Chemistry - A European Journal, 30(56). https://doi.org/10.1002/chem.202402025

MLA:

Brinke, Leon, et al. "Sulfonamide-Sulfonimide Copolymers as Novel, Fluorine-Lean Type of Proton Exchange Membranes for Fuel Cell Application." Chemistry - A European Journal 30.56 (2024).

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