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Molecular Design and Ion Transport Mechanisms in Polymer Electrolytes

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Electrochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 7

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Institute for Frontier Materials, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC, Australia
Interests: solid-state electrolytes

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Polymer electrolytes and ion-conducting ionomers are central to safer, higher-energy electrochemical technologies, including solid-state batteries and proton-based devices. However, achieving fast ion transport while maintaining mechanical integrity, interfacial stability, and wide electrochemical windows remains a major challenge. This Special Issue welcomes original research articles and focused reviews that advance the molecular design, characterisation, and mechanistic understanding of ion transport in polymer electrolytes. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following: single-ion conducting polymers; polymerised ionic liquids and protic polymer networks; zwitterionic and mixed-anion strategies for ion dissociation; polymer–salt/ionic liquid interactions; morphology and phase behaviour (including microphase separation); and the relationship between segmental dynamics and conductivity. Contributions addressing electrode/electrolyte interfaces, transport in composite and gel polymer electrolytes, and structure–property correlations using advanced techniques (e.g., impedance analysis, solid-state NMR, FTIR/Raman, scattering, microscopy, and modelling) are particularly encouraged. By bringing together chemistry-led materials innovation with rigorous transport mechanisms, this Special Issue aims to provide design rules that accelerate polymer electrolyte translation into practical, durable energy devices.

Dr. Faezeh Makhlooghiazad
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2700 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.

Keywords

  • polymer electrolytes
  • ion transport mechanisms
  • single-ion conductors
  • polymerised ionic liquids
  • zwitterionic additives
  • mixed-anion electrolytes
  • solid-state batteries
  • proton-conducting membranes
  • ionomers
  • proton-exchange membrane fuel cells
  • interfacial stability

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Published Papers

This special issue is now open for submission.
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