Electrochemical Membrane and Membrane Processes

Dear Colleagues,

With increasing concerns about energy security and environmental issues globally, there has been a growing focus on transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. As a consequence, there have also been significant changes in the energy conversion and storage landscape over the past few years. Electrochemical engineering is gaining increasing attention as the world moves toward a net-zero future. To adequately decarbonize our economy, electrochemical devices such as electrolyzers and batteries are being developed at both laboratory and industrial scales, in which polymer electrolyte membranes will play critical roles. Inspired by nature’s design principles, the next frontier in synthetic membranes lies in harnessing this synergy to create integrated material systems as electrochemical membrane reactors, by integrating chemical and redox functions as an inherently interdisciplinary field. Innovation in polymeric electrolyte materials have been proposed to achieve unprecedented performance metrics in harsh alkaline condition such as anion exchange membranes; moreover the membrane electrode assembly (MEA), also known as ‘‘full cell-type’’ or ‘‘zero-gap’’, is the heart of an alkaline water electrolysis system, in which the ionic conductive membrane allows hydroxide ions to pass through it but prevents hydrogen permeation. In these situations, achieving perfect membrane selectivity and stability at the molecular level remains challenging for manufacture, and new, low-cost ion-conductive membranes with considerable conductivity and high selectivity need to be realized. Consequently, it is desirable to enhance the durability of some membranes, while in others, the focus is on improved performance. In general, it is essential to develop low-cost membranes to maintain economic competitiveness.

This Special Issue aims to gather the recent developments on: (i) ion exchange membranes for energy conversion processes like water electrolyzer; (ii) ion conduction membranes used in redox flow batteries for energy storage processes; (iii) designing and fabrication of membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) for electrochemical reactions; and (iv) novel methods and tools for membrane characterization in electrochemical devices.

As Guest Editors of the Special Issue on “Electrochemical membrane and membrane processes”, we cordially invite you to submit a manuscript for consideration and possible publication in MDPI Membranes. This Special Issue aims to shed light on and enhance knowledge of the underlying transport phenomena in polymeric electrolyte membranes and at their interfaces with electrocatalysts, as well as the fabrication methods of various membrane types and their degradation mechanisms.

The formats of research may include (but are not limited to) the following: original articles, reviews, mini-reviews, communications, comparative perspectives, and opinions.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Baoguo Wang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Membranes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• ion exchange membranes
• renewable energy conversion and storage
• flow battery
• water electrolyzer
• membrane electrode assembly (MEA)