Effect of crystallization on proton transport in model polymer electrolyte membranes

Polymer electrolyte membranes with bicontinuous microphases comprising soft hydrated domains and mechanically robust hydrophobic domains are used in a wide range of electrochemical devices including fuel cells and electrolyzers. The self-assembly, water uptake, and proton conductivity of model block copolymer electrolytes with semicrystalline hydrophobic blocks were investigated. A series of sulfonated polystyrene-block-polyethylene (PSS-PE) copolymers were synthesized to probe the interplay between crystallization, morphology, hydration, and proton transport. In block copolymer systems with amorphous hydrophobic blocks, it has been shown that higher water update and proton conductivity are obtained in low molecular weight systems. However, crystallization is known to disrupt the self-assembly of low molecular weight block copolymers. We found that this disruption results in lower water uptake and proton conductivity. Increasing molecular weight results in less morphological disruption and improvement in performance. © 2014 American Chemical Society.