A novel SPEEK/SPVDF-co-HFP blend proton exchange membrane for direct methanol fuel cell applications

In this work, blend membranes based on sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) and sulfonated polyvinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene (SPVDF-co-HFP) with 10 wt% concentration of polymer blend in solution were prepared by solution casting method. The PEEK and PVdF-co-HFP were sulfonated with direct sulfonation method to reach sulfonation degree of 68% and 31%, respectively. The different weight ratios of blend polymers were synthesized and weight ratio of 20 wt% SPVDF-co-HFP exhibited the best properties in terms of few essential membrane properties such as membrane swelling, water uptake, thermal and stability, methanol permeability, proton conductivity and DMFC performance.

Keywords:

SPEEK , SPVDF-co-HFP , DMFC , Blend membrane