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Polymers
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Advanced Polymeric Membranes for Energy Applications
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Advanced Polymeric Membranes for Energy Applications

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Membranes and Films".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 November 2022) | Viewed by 10125

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Gutru Rambabu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Chemical Engineering, Newcastle Uinversity, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
Interests: polymer composite membranes; ion-conducting polymers; polymer electrolytes; polymeric membrane separators

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Polymer membranes are integral parts of many energy devices such as fuel cells, batteries, electrolysers, etc. The performance of the devices greatly relies on the structures and composition of polymeric membranes. Polymeric membranes act as a barrier/separator between the two electrodes and transport the ions, for example, (H+) in polymer electrolyte fuel cells. Polymeric membranes make the design of the system simple and compact and make the management of the solid electrolyte more convenient compared to liquid electrolytes. The fabrication of advanced polymeric membranes with good ionic conductivity and thermo-chemical stability is a fascinating research topic in the field of electrochemical energy conversion/storage devices.

This Special Issue aims to motivate researchers in the area of polymeric membranes. We cordially invite researchers to submit their original research article/review articles to this Special Issue entitled “Advanced Polymeric Membranes for Energy Applications”.

Dr. Gutru Rambabu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • polymer composite membranes
  • ion-conducting polymers
  • polymer electrolytes
  • organic-inorganic membranes
  • polymeric membrane separators

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 3491 KiB  
Article
Low-Cost Zinc–Alginate-Based Hydrogel–Polymer Electrolytes for Dendrite-Free Zinc-Ion Batteries with High Performances and Prolonged Lifetimes
by Zhuoyuan Zheng, Haichuan Cao, Wenhui Shi, Chunling She, Xianlong Zhou, Lili Liu and Yusong Zhu
Polymers 2023, 15(1), 212; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15010212 - 31 Dec 2022
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3125
Abstract
Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) represent an attractive choice for energy storage. However, ZIBs suffer from dendrite growth and an irreversible consumption of Zn metal, leading to capacity degradation and a low lifetime. In this work, a zinc–alginate (ZA) hydrogel–polymer electrolyte (HGPE) with a [...] Read more.
Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) represent an attractive choice for energy storage. However, ZIBs suffer from dendrite growth and an irreversible consumption of Zn metal, leading to capacity degradation and a low lifetime. In this work, a zinc–alginate (ZA) hydrogel–polymer electrolyte (HGPE) with a non-porous structure was prepared via the solution-casting method and ion displacement reaction. The resulting ZA-based HGPE exhibits a high ionic conductivity (1.24 mS cm−1 at room temperature), excellent mechanical properties (28 MPa), good thermal and electrochemical stability, and an outstanding zinc ion transference number (0.59). The ZA-based HGPE with dense structure is proven to benefit the prevention of the uneven distribution of ion current and facilitates the reduction of excessive interfacial resistance within the battery. In addition, it greatly promotes the uniform deposition of zinc ions on the electrode, thereby inhibiting the growth of zinc dendrites. The corresponding zinc symmetric battery with ZA-based HGPE can be cycled stably for 800 h at a current density of 1 mA cm−2, demonstrating the stable and reversible zinc plating/stripping behaviors on the electrode surfaces. Furthermore, the quasi-solid-state ZIB with zinc, ZA-based HGPE, and Ca0.24V2O5 (CVO) as the anode, electrolyte, and cathode materials, respectively, show a stable cyclic performance for 600 cycles at a large current density of 3 C (1 C = 400 mA g−1), in which the capacity retention rate is 88.7%. This research provides a new strategy for promoting the application of the aqueous ZIBs with high performance and environmental benignity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Polymeric Membranes for Energy Applications)
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18 pages, 3288 KiB  
Article
Mechanical Properties of Macromolecular Separators for Lithium-Ion Batteries Based on Nanoindentation Experiment
by Wenqian Hao, Xiqiao Bo, Jiamiao Xie and Tingting Xu
Polymers 2022, 14(17), 3664; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14173664 - 3 Sep 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 4335
Abstract
High tensile strength and toughness play an important role in improving the mechanical performance of separator films, such as resistance to external force, improving service life, etc. In this study, a nanoindentation experiment is performed to investigate the mechanical properties of two types [...] Read more.
High tensile strength and toughness play an important role in improving the mechanical performance of separator films, such as resistance to external force, improving service life, etc. In this study, a nanoindentation experiment is performed to investigate the mechanical properties of two types of separators for LIBs based on the grid nanoindentation method. During the indentation experiment, the “sink-in” phenomenon is observed around the indenter when plastic deformation of the specimen occurs. The “sink-in” area of the polyethylene (PE) separator is larger than that of the polypropylene/polyethylene/polypropylene (PP/PE/PP) separator, i.e., the plastic area of the PE separator is larger than that of the PP/PE/PP separator. In order to select a suitable method to evaluate the hardness and elastic modulus of these separators for LIBs, three theoretical methods, including the Oliver–Pharr method, the indentation work method, and the fitting curve method, are used for analysis and comparison in this study. The results obtained by the fitting curve method are more reasonable and accurate, which not only avoids the problem of the large contact area obtained by the Oliver–Pharr method, but also avoids the influence caused by the large fitting data of the displacement–force curve and the inaccuracy of using the maximum displacement obtained by the indentation method. In addition, the obstruction ability of the PP/PE/PP separator to locally resist external load pressed into its surface and to resist micro particles, such as fine metal powder, that can enter the lithium-ion battery during the manufacturing process is greater than that of the PE separator. This research provides guidance for studying the mechanical properties and exploring the estimation method of macromolecular separators for LIBs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Polymeric Membranes for Energy Applications)
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11 pages, 5489 KiB  
Article
Nitrogen Dense Distributions of Imidazole Grafted Dipyridyl Polybenzimidazole for a High Temperature Proton Exchange Membrane
by Qi Pei, Jianfa Liu, Hongchao Wu, Wenwen Wang, Jiaqi Ji, Keda Li, Chenliang Gong and Lei Wang
Polymers 2022, 14(13), 2621; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14132621 - 28 Jun 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2094
Abstract
The introduction of basic groups in the polybenzimidazole (PBI) main chain or side chain with low phosphoric acid doping is an effective way to avoid the trade-off between proton conductivity and mechanical strength for high temperature proton exchange membrane (HT-PEM). In this study, [...] Read more.
The introduction of basic groups in the polybenzimidazole (PBI) main chain or side chain with low phosphoric acid doping is an effective way to avoid the trade-off between proton conductivity and mechanical strength for high temperature proton exchange membrane (HT-PEM). In this study, the ethyl imidazole is grafted on the side chain of the PBI containing bipyridine in the main chain and blended with poly(2,2′-[p-oxydiphenylene]-5,5′-benzimidazole) (OPBI) to obtain a series of PBI composite membranes for HT-PEMs. The effects of the introduction of bipyridine in the main chain and the ethyl imidazole in the side chain on proton transport are investigated. The result suggests that the introduction of the imidazole and bipyridine group can effectively improve the comprehensive properties as HT-PEM. The highest of proton conductivity of the obtained membranes under saturated phosphoric acid (PA) doping can be up to 0.105 S cm−1 at 160 °C and the maximum output power density is 836 mW cm−2 at 160 °C, which is 2.3 times that of the OPBI membrane. Importantly, even at low acid doping content (~178%), the tensile strength of the membrane is 22.2 MPa, which is nearly 2 times that of the OPBI membrane, the proton conductivity of the membrane achieves 0.054 S cm−1 at 160 °C, which is 2.3 times that of the OPBI membrane, and the maximum output power density of a single cell is 540 mW cm−2 at 160 °C, which is 1.5 times that of the OPBI membrane. The results suggest that the introduction of a large number of nitrogen-containing sites in the main chain and side chain is an efficient way to improve the proton conductivity, even at a low PA doping level. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Polymeric Membranes for Energy Applications)
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