Proton-conducting Membrane Based on Epoxy Resin-poly(vinyl alcohol)-sulfosuccinic Acid Blend and Its Nanocomposite with Sulfonated Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes for Fuel-cell Application

Abstract

A blend of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) with diglycidyl ether of bisphenol-A (DGB) in the presence of sulfosuccinic acid (SSA) was investigated as hydrolytically-stable proton-conducting membrane. The PVA modification was carried out by varying the DGB: SSA ratio (20: 20, 10: 20, and 5: 20). A nanocomposite of the blend (20: 20) was prepared with sulfonated multiwall carbon nanotubes (viz., 1, 3 and 5 wt%). The water uptake behavior and the proton conductivity of the prepared membranes were evaluated. The ionic conductivity of the membranes and the water uptake behavior depended on the s-MWCNT and the DGB contents. The ionic conductivity showed an enhancement for the blend and for the nanocomposite membrane as compared to the pristine polymer.