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Quaternized poly (2.6 dimethyl – 1.4 phenylene oxide)/Polysulfone anion exchange membrane reinforced with graphene oxide for methanol alkaline fuel cell application

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Abstract

Composite anion exchange membranes (AEM) based on quaternized poly (phenylene) oxide and polysulfone blend (QPPO/PSF) were successfully fabricated and characterized for methanol alkaline fuel cell application. To make a composite AEM, increasing graphene oxide (GO) wt.% ratios was introduced in the polymer blend. The membrane properties were enhanced by the addition of GO in comparison to the bare QPPO/PSF blend. The addition of GO resulted to a higher ion exchange capacity (IEC) of 3.21 mmol.g−1 and an ion conductivity increase of up to 63.67 mS.cm−1 at 80 °C. The QPPO/PSF/2%GO composite membrane reached a peak power density of 112 mW.cm−2, which is about five (5) times more than the parent QPPO membrane at room temperature. The above results indicate that QPPO/PSF/GO is a good candidate as an anion exchange membrane for alkaline fuel cell application.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thankfully acknowledge the South African National Research Foundation (NRF), the University of Johannesburg and the Centre for Nanomaterials Science Research (CNSR) for financial support. Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for experiment design and analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Chemistry, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Phumlani F. Msomi, Patrick G. Ndungu & James Ramontja

  2. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Pretoria, South Africa

    Patrick Nonjola

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  1. Phumlani F. Msomi
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Correspondence to James Ramontja.

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Msomi, P.F., Nonjola, P., Ndungu, P.G. et al. Quaternized poly (2.6 dimethyl – 1.4 phenylene oxide)/Polysulfone anion exchange membrane reinforced with graphene oxide for methanol alkaline fuel cell application. J Polym Res 25, 143 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10965-018-1532-4

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