Development of proton conducting polymer nanocomposite membranes based on SPVdF-HFP and graphene oxide for H₂-O₂ fuel cells

Abstract

New series of sulfonated poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)/graphene oxide (SPVdF-HFP/GO) polymer nanocomposites were prepared by electrospinning technique. The PVdF-HFP polymer was sulfonated by treating the copolymer with appropriate quantity of chlorosulfonic acid. The prepared composites were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, XPS, SEM, TGA and impedance spectroscopy. The efficiency of sulfonated polymer with graphene oxide towards their physico-chemical properties was studied in detail. SPVdF-HFP/GO(1.5 wt.%) composite membrane showed higher ion-exchange capacity of 0.936 meq. g⁻¹, whereas the pure membrane limits to 0.493 meq. g⁻¹. The thermal and impedance analyses demonstrated that the polymer nanocomposite membranes have good thermal stability and proton conductivity than that of the virgin polymer. Herein, the polymer electrolyte membranes derived from SPVdF-HFP and GO can be suitable candidates for fuel cell applications.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords:

• Fuel cell
• electrolyte membrane
• poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)
• graphene oxide
• proton conductivity

Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the Department of Chemistry, Anna University and Department of Chemistry, SRM Institute of Science and Technology for providing laboratory and instrumentation facilities.