Nora Gourdoupi

Influence of the Molecular Structure on the Properties and Fuel Cell Performance of High Temperature Polymer Electrolyte Membranes

High Temperature PEM Fuel Cells (130 C-200 C) offer the distinct advantages over traditional Low Temperature PEMs. Polymeric materials of specific properties should be used as electrolytes for high temperature MEAs in order to withstand the strong conditions during the fuel cell operation. Current research interest focuses on the development of new polymers with tailored basic sites that could improve the acid–base interactions of the membranes in order to acquire high proton conductivity (~10S/cm) at temperatures ranging between 150°C and 200°C Herein we present our approach to the synthesis of monomers and copolymers containing basic groups having high molecular weights, increased solubility and the ability to form complexes with strong acids. Different polymeric structures have been used in order to examine the influence of the detailed polymeric structure on the final membrane properties. It was found that the phosphoric acid doping ability is dramatically influenced by the presence of the polar groups, as well as the detailed copolymer structure. Even small differences on the pyridine content resulted in drastic difference on the phosphoric acid level in some cases as showed in Fig. 1.