Ion Exchange Membrane Design for Energy Conversion and Storage

A special issue of Membranes (ISSN 2077-0375). This special issue belongs to the section "Membrane Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2021) | Viewed by 4798

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Engineering, University of Calabria (DIAm-UNICAL), Via P. Bucci CUBO 44/A, 87036 Rende, Italy
Interests: ion exhcange membranes; reverse electrodialysis; water electrolysis; hydrogen production; CO2 reduction
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Ion exchange membranes (IEMs) represent the key component of many electrochemical energy conversion and storage systems, including fuel cells, electrolyzers, reverse electrodialyzers, and batteries.

As charged functional materials, these materials allow a selective passage of ions between separate compartments in electrochemical devices. In the past years, research on IEMs has focused on improving the performance of these materials mainly in terms of conductivity, selectivity, and stability, among others, followed by testing and analysis in the prospective technology of interest. Thus, this Special Issue aims at bringing together some new developments in ion exchange membrane material design as well as application in some of the rapidly growing areas of interest related to clean energy generation, hydrogen production, and electrochemical CO2 reduction. 

Dr. Ramato Ashu Tufa
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • ion exchange membranes
  • membrane preparation
  • selectivity vs. conductivity
  • energy conversion and storage

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

17 pages, 2205 KiB  
Article
Studies on Anion Exchange Membrane and Interface Properties by Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy: The Role of pH
by Wenjuan Zhang, Wei Cheng, Ramato Ashu Tufa, Caihong Liu, David Aili, Debabrata Chanda, Jing Chang, Shaopo Wang, Yufeng Zhang and Jun Ma
Membranes 2021, 11(10), 771; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes11100771 - 10 Oct 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4155
Abstract
Ion-exchange membranes (IEMs) represent a key component in various electrochemical energy conversion and storage systems. In this study, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was used to investigate the effects of structural changes of anion exchange membranes (AEMs) on the bulk membrane and interface properties [...] Read more.
Ion-exchange membranes (IEMs) represent a key component in various electrochemical energy conversion and storage systems. In this study, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was used to investigate the effects of structural changes of anion exchange membranes (AEMs) on the bulk membrane and interface properties as a function of solution pH. The variations in the physico/electrochemical properties, including ion exchange capacity, swelling degree, fixed charge density, zeta potentials as well as membrane and interface resistances of two commercial AEMs and cation exchange membranes (CEMs, as a control) were systematically investigated in different pH environments. Structural changes of the membrane surface were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Most notably, at high pH (pH > 10), the membrane (Rm) and the diffusion boundary layer resistances (Rdbl) increased for the two AEMs, whereas the electrical double layer resistance decreased simultaneously. This increase in Rm and Rdbl was mainly attributed to the deprotonation of the tertiary amino groups (-NR2H+) as a membrane functionality. Our results show that the local pH at the membrane-solution interface plays a crucial role on membrane electrochemical properties in IEM transport processes, particularly for AEMs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ion Exchange Membrane Design for Energy Conversion and Storage)
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