SiO2/sulfonated poly ether ether ketone (SPEEK) composite nanofiber mat supported proton exchange membranes for fuel cells

Chanmin Lee; Seong Mu Jo; Jonghyun Choi; Kyung Youl Baek; Yen Bach Truong; Ilias Louis Kyratzis; Yong Gun Shul

doi:10.1007/s10853-013-7162-7

SiO₂/sulfonated poly ether ether ketone (SPEEK) composite nanofiber mat supported proton exchange membranes for fuel cells

Chanmin Lee, Seong Mu Jo, Jonghyun Choi, Kyung Youl Baek, Yen Bach Truong, Ilias Louis Kyratzis, Yong Gun Shul

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

86 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A composite membrane of silica (SiO₂)/sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) nanofiber mat impregnated with Nafion was fabricated and evaluated for its potential use as a proton conductor for high temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. The supporting SiO₂/SPEEK composite nanofibrous skeleton was prepared via electrospinning of a mixture of SPEEK solution and silica sol prepared from tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS). The control of hydrolysis and condensation of TEOS enabled to form entangled SiO₂ networks miscible to SPEEK solution. The prepared SiO ₂/SPEEK nanofiber mat was impregnated with Nafion® to completely fill the inter-fiber voids to prepare a dense membrane. The morphology of the nanofiber mat and the composite membrane were observed by scanning electron microscopy and the presence of SiO₂ and SPEEK in the prepared nanofibers was confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy. Proton conductivity and swelling of the membrane were measured. The H₂/O₂ single cell test using the composite membrane as a PEM was performed. At a high temperature and low humidity condition (120 C and 40 % RH), the maximum power density was 170 mW/cm² for the Nafion-impregnated SiO₂/SPEEK (40/60 w/w) composite nanofiber membrane that was 2.4 times higher than recast Nafion (71 mW/cm²) while SPEEK film failed.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	3665-3671
Number of pages	7
Journal	Journal of Materials Science
Volume	48
Issue number	10
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-013-7162-7
Publication status	Published - 2013 May

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Acknowledgements This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea Grant funded by the Korean Government (MEST) (NRF-2009-C1AAA001-2009-0092926) and CSIRO, Advanced Materials Theme, Australia.

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

Materials Science(all)
Mechanics of Materials
Mechanical Engineering

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10.1007/s10853-013-7162-7

Cite this

@article{d898b5bd54c4445ebdb4b3fadb62f37f,

title = "SiO2/sulfonated poly ether ether ketone (SPEEK) composite nanofiber mat supported proton exchange membranes for fuel cells",

abstract = "A composite membrane of silica (SiO2)/sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) nanofiber mat impregnated with Nafion was fabricated and evaluated for its potential use as a proton conductor for high temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. The supporting SiO2/SPEEK composite nanofibrous skeleton was prepared via electrospinning of a mixture of SPEEK solution and silica sol prepared from tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS). The control of hydrolysis and condensation of TEOS enabled to form entangled SiO2 networks miscible to SPEEK solution. The prepared SiO 2/SPEEK nanofiber mat was impregnated with Nafion{\textregistered} to completely fill the inter-fiber voids to prepare a dense membrane. The morphology of the nanofiber mat and the composite membrane were observed by scanning electron microscopy and the presence of SiO2 and SPEEK in the prepared nanofibers was confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy. Proton conductivity and swelling of the membrane were measured. The H2/O2 single cell test using the composite membrane as a PEM was performed. At a high temperature and low humidity condition (120 C and 40 % RH), the maximum power density was 170 mW/cm2 for the Nafion-impregnated SiO2/SPEEK (40/60 w/w) composite nanofiber membrane that was 2.4 times higher than recast Nafion (71 mW/cm2) while SPEEK film failed.",

author = "Chanmin Lee and Jo, {Seong Mu} and Jonghyun Choi and Baek, {Kyung Youl} and Truong, {Yen Bach} and Kyratzis, {Ilias Louis} and Shul, {Yong Gun}",

note = "Funding Information: Acknowledgements This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea Grant funded by the Korean Government (MEST) (NRF-2009-C1AAA001-2009-0092926) and CSIRO, Advanced Materials Theme, Australia.",

year = "2013",

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doi = "10.1007/s10853-013-7162-7",

language = "English",

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AU - Lee, Chanmin

AU - Jo, Seong Mu

AU - Choi, Jonghyun

AU - Baek, Kyung Youl

AU - Truong, Yen Bach

AU - Kyratzis, Ilias Louis

AU - Shul, Yong Gun

N1 - Funding Information: Acknowledgements This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea Grant funded by the Korean Government (MEST) (NRF-2009-C1AAA001-2009-0092926) and CSIRO, Advanced Materials Theme, Australia.

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N2 - A composite membrane of silica (SiO2)/sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) nanofiber mat impregnated with Nafion was fabricated and evaluated for its potential use as a proton conductor for high temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. The supporting SiO2/SPEEK composite nanofibrous skeleton was prepared via electrospinning of a mixture of SPEEK solution and silica sol prepared from tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS). The control of hydrolysis and condensation of TEOS enabled to form entangled SiO2 networks miscible to SPEEK solution. The prepared SiO 2/SPEEK nanofiber mat was impregnated with Nafion® to completely fill the inter-fiber voids to prepare a dense membrane. The morphology of the nanofiber mat and the composite membrane were observed by scanning electron microscopy and the presence of SiO2 and SPEEK in the prepared nanofibers was confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy. Proton conductivity and swelling of the membrane were measured. The H2/O2 single cell test using the composite membrane as a PEM was performed. At a high temperature and low humidity condition (120 C and 40 % RH), the maximum power density was 170 mW/cm2 for the Nafion-impregnated SiO2/SPEEK (40/60 w/w) composite nanofiber membrane that was 2.4 times higher than recast Nafion (71 mW/cm2) while SPEEK film failed.

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