Simultaneously Promoting Proton Conductivity and Mechanical Stability of SPEEK Membrane by Incorporating Porous g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>
Proton exchange membranes are widely used in environmentally friendly applications such as fuel cells and electrochemical hydrogen compression. In these applications, an ideal proton exchange membrane should have both excellent proton conductivity and mechanical strength. Polymer proton exchange mem...
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MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| author | Xiaoyao Wang Benbing Shi |
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| description | Proton exchange membranes are widely used in environmentally friendly applications such as fuel cells and electrochemical hydrogen compression. In these applications, an ideal proton exchange membrane should have both excellent proton conductivity and mechanical strength. Polymer proton exchange membranes, such as sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) membranes with high ion exchange capacity, can lead to higher proton conductivity. However, the ionic groups may reduce the interaction between polymer segments, lower the membrane’s mechanical strength, and even cause it to dissolve in water as the temperature exceeds 55 °C. The porous graphitic C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> (Pg–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>) nanosheet is an important two–dimensional polymeric carbon–based material and has a high content of –NH<sub>2</sub> and –NH– groups, which can interact with the sulfonic acid groups in the sulfonated SPEEK polymer, form a more continuous proton transfer channel, and inhibit the movement of the polymer segment, leading to higher proton conductivity and mechanical strength. In this study, we found that a SPEEK membrane containing 3% Pg–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> nanosheets achieves the optimized proton conductivity of 138 mS/cm (80 °C and 100% RH) and a mechanical strength of 74.1 MPa, improving both proton conductivity and mechanical strength by over 50% compared to the SPEEK membrane. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d15c35ed2f654ddbb90a475eee03c6d4 |
| institution | DOAJ |
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| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Membranes |
| spelling | doaj-art-d15c35ed2f654ddbb90a475eee03c6d42025-08-20T03:07:55ZengMDPI AGMembranes2077-03752025-06-0115719410.3390/membranes15070194Simultaneously Promoting Proton Conductivity and Mechanical Stability of SPEEK Membrane by Incorporating Porous g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>Xiaoyao Wang0Benbing Shi1Guangdong Water Co., Ltd., Shenzhen 518021, ChinaCollege of Food Quality and Engineering, Nanning University, Nanning 530000, ChinaProton exchange membranes are widely used in environmentally friendly applications such as fuel cells and electrochemical hydrogen compression. In these applications, an ideal proton exchange membrane should have both excellent proton conductivity and mechanical strength. Polymer proton exchange membranes, such as sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) membranes with high ion exchange capacity, can lead to higher proton conductivity. However, the ionic groups may reduce the interaction between polymer segments, lower the membrane’s mechanical strength, and even cause it to dissolve in water as the temperature exceeds 55 °C. The porous graphitic C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> (Pg–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>) nanosheet is an important two–dimensional polymeric carbon–based material and has a high content of –NH<sub>2</sub> and –NH– groups, which can interact with the sulfonic acid groups in the sulfonated SPEEK polymer, form a more continuous proton transfer channel, and inhibit the movement of the polymer segment, leading to higher proton conductivity and mechanical strength. In this study, we found that a SPEEK membrane containing 3% Pg–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> nanosheets achieves the optimized proton conductivity of 138 mS/cm (80 °C and 100% RH) and a mechanical strength of 74.1 MPa, improving both proton conductivity and mechanical strength by over 50% compared to the SPEEK membrane.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/15/7/194proton exchange membranesulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> |
| spellingShingle | Xiaoyao Wang Benbing Shi Simultaneously Promoting Proton Conductivity and Mechanical Stability of SPEEK Membrane by Incorporating Porous g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> Membranes proton exchange membrane sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> |
| title | Simultaneously Promoting Proton Conductivity and Mechanical Stability of SPEEK Membrane by Incorporating Porous g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> |
| title_full | Simultaneously Promoting Proton Conductivity and Mechanical Stability of SPEEK Membrane by Incorporating Porous g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> |
| title_fullStr | Simultaneously Promoting Proton Conductivity and Mechanical Stability of SPEEK Membrane by Incorporating Porous g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> |
| title_full_unstemmed | Simultaneously Promoting Proton Conductivity and Mechanical Stability of SPEEK Membrane by Incorporating Porous g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> |
| title_short | Simultaneously Promoting Proton Conductivity and Mechanical Stability of SPEEK Membrane by Incorporating Porous g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> |
| title_sort | simultaneously promoting proton conductivity and mechanical stability of speek membrane by incorporating porous g c sub 3 sub n sub 4 sub |
| topic | proton exchange membrane sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) g–C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/15/7/194 |
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