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Synthesis, characterization, and transport properties of Nafion-polypyrrole membrane for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) application

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Abstract

Due to their distinctive chemical, electronic, and environmental properties, polypyrrole is used as a blocking barrier for methanol leakage in direct methanol fuel cells. Here, a straightforward deposition method of polypyrrole deposition on Nafion has been achieved by chemical polymerization in an aqueous medium. The chemical polymerization has been carried out during 1 h and 24 h; thus, the effect of the polypyrrole coating has been studied toward the leakage of methanol by cyclic voltammetry. It was found that the diffusion of methanol has been reduced for at least to three decades in comparison to commercial Nafion. The effect of the polypyrrole (PPy) coating on transport properties such as water uptake, ion exchange capacity, and proton conductivity has been investigated. Scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) has been used to investigate quantitatively the membrane proton conductivity. A potentiometric tungsten microelectrode, positioned above the membrane, was used to monitor directly the diffusion of H+. The chemical and morphological characterization of PPy coating has been characterized by Fourier transform infrared FTIR–ATR spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron (XPS), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM).

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Funding

This work has been supported by the MESRSFC and CNRST (Morocco) under grant No. PPR/30/2015.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire des Matériaux et Environnement, Faculté des Sciences, Département de Chimie, Université Ibn Zohr, 80000, Agadir, Morocco

    S. Ben Jadi & M. Bazzaoui

  2. Laboratoire de Chimie des Matériaux, Faculté des Sciences, Département de Chimie, Université Mohammed Ier, 60000, Oujda, Morocco

    A. El Guerraf & E.A. Bazzaoui

  3. Department of Mechanical Systems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Hiroshima Institute of Technology, 2-1-1 Miyake, Saeki-ku, Hiroshima, 731-5193, Japan

    R. Wang

  4. Faculdade de Engenharia, Departamento de Engenharia Química, Universidade do Porto, Rua Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal

    J.I. Martins & M. Bazzaoui

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  1. S. Ben Jadi
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  2. A. El Guerraf
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  3. E.A. Bazzaoui
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  4. R. Wang
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Correspondence to M. Bazzaoui.

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Ben Jadi, S., El Guerraf, A., Bazzaoui, E. et al. Synthesis, characterization, and transport properties of Nafion-polypyrrole membrane for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) application. J Solid State Electrochem 23, 2423–2433 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10008-019-04355-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10008-019-04355-w

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