Enhanced Ion Conduction in Polymer Electrolyte Films Having Molecular Nanoimprinting

Download or read book Enhanced Ion Conduction in Polymer Electrolyte Films Having Molecular Nanoimprinting written by Jana Dajani and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Molecularly imprinted polymer electrolyte films with enhanced ion conductivity are a noteworthy area of research. Their study is important, because they act as a way of advancing electrochemical appliances such as batteries and fuel cells. A recent area of work has involved the usage of molecularly imprinted polymers to create Nano-channels in polymeric electrolyte films. The creation of these channels allows for the ions to move freely within a solid medium rather than the traditionally used liquid electrolyte systems. This is an interesting approach, because by replacing the liquid electrolyte in lithium-ion batteries and fuel cells with an electrolyte film that has high surface porosity, we keep the level of ion conduction intact and produce safer and more efficient electrochemical cells with lower shorting and thermal runaway occurrences. The electrical conductivity of the nano-imprinted vs non-imprinted polymer electrolyte films is studied in this research. A series of PEO-lithium triflate films has been prepared using the solution cast method with non-polar hydrocarbons as a template (napthalene, adamantane, anthracene, and biphenyl). Out of the twenty-six electrolyte films created each had varying amounts of template (5%, 10%, 20%, 40%) of which some of the electrolyte films were kept as they are while the non-polar organic template was washed out of some (with extraction success ranging from 5-95%). This was done to increase the surface porosity of the film to allow for higher ion conduction. By the end of this research experiment it was observed that the organic compound that showed the most relevant and consistent pattern was adamantane. Films that were leached of the 20% adamantane incorporated in them showed a major increase in conductivity while the other films and other percentages all gave inconsistent data of which will need further research and work. Thus, PEO and lithium triflate films that are leached out of 20% Adamantane have shown to have increased conductivity in relation to the standard (blank) film and the 20% un-leached adamantane film. This result shows that the usage of such films as a solid electrolyte in lithium ion batteries can increase the conductivity of the battery and make it safer to use by the public.