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Development of a proton exchange membrane based on trifluoromethanesulfonylimide-grafted polybenzimidazole

Polymer Journal volume 53, pages 1403–1411 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

Trifluoromethanesulfonylimide-grafted polybenzimidazole (PBI-TFSI) was synthesized for proton exchange membrane (PEM) applications. Its proton conductivity was (a) less dependent on humidity and (b) higher than that of conventional fluorine-based PEM (Nafion) and propanesulfonic acid-grafted PBI (PBI-PS) at a relative humidity of 40%. The chemical structure of PBI-TFSI was investigated using 1H and 19F nuclear magnetic resonance and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The membranes exhibited good transparency, flexibility, and thermal stability up to 350 °C. Membranes with different side chain grafting ratios were prepared, and the water uptake and hydration number of the PBI-TFSI membranes were lower than those of the PBI-PS membranes, most likely because of the hydrophobicity of the side chain. The higher proton concentration provided by TFSI with stronger acidity than PS might be the reason for the higher proton conductivities of PBI-TFSI.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan (grant no. 205295), under the Nanotechnology Platform Project of MEXT, Japan, KAKENHI (grant no. JP18H01816), bilateral program (grant no. AJ190078) of the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), CREST program (grant no. AJ199002) of the Japanese Science and Technology Agency (JST), and by the TEPCO Foundation and Fukuoka Financial Group Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan

    Hoon Han, Hiroto Miura, Yuki Motoishi, Naoki Tanaka & Tsuyohiko Fujigaya

  2. The World Premier International Research Center Initiative, International Institute of Carbon Neutral Energy Research, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan

    Hoon Han, Yuki Motoishi, Naoki Tanaka & Tsuyohiko Fujigaya

  3. Department of Chemical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan

    Tsuyohiko Fujigaya

  4. Center for Molecular Systems, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan

    Tsuyohiko Fujigaya

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Han, H., Miura, H., Motoishi, Y. et al. Development of a proton exchange membrane based on trifluoromethanesulfonylimide-grafted polybenzimidazole. Polym J 53, 1403–1411 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41428-021-00551-6

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