TY - JOUR
T1 - Tuning the Electrochemical Properties of Novel Asymmetric Integral Sulfonated Polysulfone Cation Exchange Membranes
AU - Avci, Ahmet Halil
AU - Goethem, Cédric Van
AU - Rijnaarts, Timon
AU - Santoro, Sergio
AU - Aquino, Marco
AU - Profio, Gianluca Di
AU - Vankelecom, Ivo F.J.
AU - de Vos, Wiebe M.
AU - Fontananova, Enrica
AU - Curcio, Efrem
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2021/1/7
Y1 - 2021/1/7
N2 - In this study, novel asymmetric integral cation exchange membranes were prepared by the wet phase inversion of sulfonated polysulfone (SPSf) solutions. SPSf with different degrees of sulfonation (DS) was synthesized by variation in the amount of chlorosulfonic acid utilized as a sulfonating agent. The characterization of SPSf samples was performed using FTIR and 1H-NMR techniques. SPSf with a DS of 0.31 (0.67 meq/g corresponding ion exchange capacity) was chosen to prepare the membranes, as polymers with a higher DS resulted in poor mechanical properties and excessive swelling in water. By a systematic study, the opportunity to tune the properties of SPSf membranes by acting on the composition of the polymeric solution was demonstrated. The effect of two different phase inversion parameters, solvent type and co-solvent ratio, were investigated by morphological and electrochemical characterization. The best properties (permselectivity of 0.86 and electrical resistance of 6.3 Ω∙cm2) were obtained for the membrane prepared with 2-propanol (IPA):1-Methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP) in a 20:80 ratio. This membrane was further characterized in different solution concentrations to estimate its performance in a Reverse Electrodialysis (RED) operation. Although the estimated generated power was less than that of the commercial CMX (Neosepta) membrane, used as a benchmark, the tailor-made membrane can be considered as a cost-effective alternative, as one of the main limitations to the commercialization of RED is the high membrane price.
AB - In this study, novel asymmetric integral cation exchange membranes were prepared by the wet phase inversion of sulfonated polysulfone (SPSf) solutions. SPSf with different degrees of sulfonation (DS) was synthesized by variation in the amount of chlorosulfonic acid utilized as a sulfonating agent. The characterization of SPSf samples was performed using FTIR and 1H-NMR techniques. SPSf with a DS of 0.31 (0.67 meq/g corresponding ion exchange capacity) was chosen to prepare the membranes, as polymers with a higher DS resulted in poor mechanical properties and excessive swelling in water. By a systematic study, the opportunity to tune the properties of SPSf membranes by acting on the composition of the polymeric solution was demonstrated. The effect of two different phase inversion parameters, solvent type and co-solvent ratio, were investigated by morphological and electrochemical characterization. The best properties (permselectivity of 0.86 and electrical resistance of 6.3 Ω∙cm2) were obtained for the membrane prepared with 2-propanol (IPA):1-Methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP) in a 20:80 ratio. This membrane was further characterized in different solution concentrations to estimate its performance in a Reverse Electrodialysis (RED) operation. Although the estimated generated power was less than that of the commercial CMX (Neosepta) membrane, used as a benchmark, the tailor-made membrane can be considered as a cost-effective alternative, as one of the main limitations to the commercialization of RED is the high membrane price.
KW - Cation exchange membrane
KW - Chlorosulfonation
KW - Electrochemical characterization
KW - Reverse electrodialysis
KW - Sulfonated polysulfone
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85099901279&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/molecules26020265
DO - 10.3390/molecules26020265
M3 - Article
SN - 1420-3049
VL - 26
JO - Molecules
JF - Molecules
IS - 2
M1 - 265
ER -