Nafion–Zirconium Phosphate Nanocomposite Membranes with High Filler Loadings: Conductivity and Mechanical Properties

Abstract
 
Zirconium phosphate (ZrP) was incorporated in preformed Nafion 117 membranes,Reiteration of these treatments under the same reaction conditions allowed to obtain membranes with filler loading in the range of 20–40 wt.-%.31P MAS NMR investigations showed that the filler is mainly a-ZrP and that the fraction of monohydrogen phosphate groups in the a-type environment increases with the number of treatments.
 
All membranes were characterised by stress–strain mechanical tests at room temperature and turned out to be stiffer than Nafion 117.

Through-plane conductivity determinations were carried out as a function of temperature and relative humidity (RH).

At 100 ℃ and RH in the range of 30–90%, the composite membranes were less conductive than Nafion 117, and the higher the filler loading the larger the conductivity decrease occurring with decreasing RH.

 
The conductivity of the composite membranes showed however better long-term stability at high temperature and RH values.

Results and Discussion

The percentage of filler formed in the Nafion 117 matrix according to the ion exchange method varies linearly with the number of steps of the preparation procedure (Figure 1).

Structural Characterisation






Mechanical Properties


The elastic modulus of the composite membranes was enhanced by the increase in the filler loading (Figure 6).


Proton Conductivity

Nafion/ZrP composites have improved conductivity compared with neat Nafion for a ZrP content of 10 wt.-%.  at 90% RH, the composite membrane exhibits better dimensional stability than Naf_1 at high temperature.





Conclusion

By using ZrP as a consequence of better dimensional stability, the conductivity of the composite membranes exhibits an enlarged stability domain at higher temperature and RH values in comparison with the parent Nafion 117 membranes that underwent the same thermal treatments.

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