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Updated: Nov 25, 2025

Synthesis of Hydrogels with Antifouling Properties As Membranes for Water Purification
Published on: April 7, 2017
Enhanced Hydroxide Conductivity and Dimensional Stability with Blended Membranes Containing Hyperbranched PAES/Linear
Sang Hee Kim1, Kyu Ha Lee2, Ji Young Chu2
1Department of Energy Storage/Conversion Engineering, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Research Center, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Jeollabuk-do, Korea.
Abstract:
A series of novel blended anion exchange membranes (AEMs) were prepared with hyperbranched brominated poly(arylene ether sulfone) (Br-HB-PAES) and linear chloromethylated poly(phenylene oxide) (CM-PPO). The as-prepared blended membranes were fabricated with different weight ratios of Br-HB-PAES to CM-PPO, and the quaternization reaction for introducing the ionic functional group was performed by triethylamine. The Q-PAES/PPO-XY (quaternized-PAES/PPO-XY) blended membranes promoted the ion channel formation as the strong hydrogen bonds interconnecting the two polymers were maintained, and showed an improved hydroxide conductivity with excellent thermal behavior. In particular, the Q-PAES/PPO-55 membrane showed a very high hydroxide ion conductivity (90.9 mS cm-1) compared to the pristine Q-HB-PAES membrane (32.8 mS cm-1), a result supported by the morphology of the membrane as determined by the AFM analysis. In addition, the rigid hyperbranched structure showed a suppressed swelling ratio of 17.9-24.9% despite an excessive water uptake of 33.2-50.3% at 90 °C, and demonstrated a remarkable alkaline stability under 2.0 M KOH conditions over 1000 h.
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