Degradation Influence of Single Solvents on the Structural Integrity of Ionomer Membranes: Morphological, Structural and Electrochemical Properties

Abstract

Sustainable energy technologies like the fuel cell have been explored as potential substitute energy sources to lessen pollution and reliance on fossil fuels. At the very core of fuel cells are ionomer membranes, particularly used in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) and other electrochemical devices such as electrolyzers. This research aimed to study the morphological and structural changes of ionomer membranes in the presence of single solvents. The ionomer membranes were partially dissolved in water (polar protic solvent) and dimethyl sulfoxide (polar aprotic solvent) and analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The results showed that water, being a polar protic solvent, interacted not only with the hydrophilic sulfonic acid regions of the membranes but also with the hydrophobic fluorocarbon backbone as seen in the EDX results. On the other hand, DMSO, which is a polar aprotic solvent, caused more visible changes in both structure and surface appearance. By examining these relationships more closely, this research deepened our understanding of how single solvents affect ionomer membranes to improve ionomer membrane fabrication methods.