An environmentally friendly process for the synthesis of an fGO modified anion exchange membrane for electro-membrane applications†
Abstract
We report the synthesis of an anion exchange membrane (AEM) based on chemically covalently modified graphene oxide (GO) for electrodialysis and fuel cell applications. GO was modified with silica (fGO) using APTEOS which involves an epoxide ring opening reaction. The incorporation of silica particles within the GO flakes is characterized by TEM, EDX, XRD and FTIR while thermal stability is measured by TGA. Furthermore the successful development of the membrane is done by incorporating fGO within quaternized polyethyleneimine (PEI) and poly(vinyl alcohol) by a solution casting method followed by cross linking. The dispersibility of the silica modified graphene oxide is found to be very good within the polymer matrix. Membranes of various fGO content i.e. 1, 2, and 5 wt% within the PEI matrix have been synthesized. The surface morphology and structural analysis of the membranes were done using AFM, FTIR, XRD and 1H NMR. Thermo mechanical analysis of the membranes was done using TGA, DSC and UTM. Physicochemical and electrochemical analysis of the AEM were performed to quantify the ability for electro-membrane processes. The fGO-PEI-2 membrane shows excellent electrochemical properties with comparable stability among the membranes. Furthermore the applicability of AEMs has been analyzed towards electrodialysis and fuel cell application. fGO-PEI-2 membrane show great potential for electrodialysis and fuel cell application.
Please wait while we load your content...
