# US 2010/0167102 A1 · Inter-penetrated proton exchange membrane, method for manufacturing the same, and proton exchange membrane fuel cell utilizing the same

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- Number: US 2010/0167102 A1
- Document ID: US20100167102A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 12/567,048
- Filed: 2009-09-25
- Published: 2010-07-01
- Earliest claimed: 2008-12-30
- Assignees: Industrial Technology Research Institute
- Inventors: Jing-Pin PAN; Yueh-Wei LIN; Chung-Liang CHANG; Li- Duan TSAI; Ya-Tin HSU
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20100167102A1

## CPC

- H01M 8/1039: halogenated, e.g. sulfonated polyvinylidene fluorides
- C08J 5/2275: {Heterogeneous membranes}
- C08L 27/18: Homopolymers or copolymers or tetrafluoroethene
- H01M 8/1023: having only carbon, e.g. polyarylenes, polystyrenes or polybutadiene-styrenes
- H01M 8/1041: Polymer electrolyte composites, mixtures or blends
- H01M 8/1081: starting from solutions, dispersions or slurries exclusively of polymers
- C08J 2300/202: Dendritic macromolecules, e.g. dendrimers or hyperbranched polymers
- C08J 2300/208: Interpenetrating networks [IPN]
- C08L 2205/04: containing interpenetrating networks
- Y02E 60/50: Fuel cells
- Y02P 70/50: Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product
- H01M: PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- C08J: WORKING-UP; GENERAL PROCESSES OF COMPOUNDING; AFTER-TREATMENT NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C08B, C08C, C08F, C08G or C08H (working, e.g. shaping, of plastics B29)
- C08L: COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS (compositions based on polymerisable monomers C08F, C08G; artificial filaments or fibres D01F; textile treating compositions D06)
- Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
- Y02P: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS

## Abstract

The disclosed forms a proton exchange membrane. First, multi-maleimide and barbituric acid are copolymerized to form a hyper-branched polymer. Next, the solvent of the sulfonated tetrafluorethylene copolymer (Nafion) aqueous solution is replaced from water with dimethyl acetamide (DMAc). 10 to 20 parts by weight of the hyper-branched polymer is added to the 90 to 80 parts by weight of the Nafion in a DMAc solution, stood and heated to 50° C. to inter-penetrate the hyper-branched polymer and the Nafion. The heated solution is coated on a substrate, baked, and pre-treated to remove residue solvent for completing an inter-penetrated proton exchange membrane.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An inter-penetrated proton exchange membrane, comprising;
80 to 90 parts by weight of the sulfonated tetraflorethylene copolymer; and
20 to 10 parts by weight of hyper-branched polymer polymerized by multi-maleimide and barbituric acid,
wherein the sulfonated tetraflorethylene copolymer and the hyper-branched polymer inter-penetrate each other, and
wherein the multi-maleimide is represented by formula as below:
wherein n is an integral of 0 to 4.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The inter-penetrated proton exchange membrane as claimed in claim 1,
wherein the multi-maleimide and the barbituric acid have a molar ratio of 10:1 to 1:1.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

A proton exchange membrane fuel cell, comprising the inter-penetrated proton exchange membrane as claimed in claim 1.

### Claim 4

A method for forming an inter-penetrated proton exchange membrane, comprising:
copolymerizing multi-maleimide and barbituric acid to form a hyper-branched polymer;
replacing water of the sulfonated tetrafluorethylene copolymer aqueous solution with dimethyl acetamide (DMAc);
adding 10 to 20 parts by weight of the hyper-branched polymer to 90 to 80 parts by weight of the sulfonated tetrafluorethylene copolymer in a DMAc solution to form a mixture;
standing and heating the mixture to 50° C. to inter-penetrate the hyper-branched polymer and the sulfonated tetrafluorethylene copolymer, thereby forming an inter-penetrated polymer solution;
coating the inter-penetrated polymer solution on a substrate; and
baking and pre-treating the coating to remove residue DMAc for completing an inter-penetrated proton exchange membrane,
wherein the multi-maleimide is represented by formula as below:
wherein n is an integral of 0 to 4.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the multi-maleimide and the barbituric acid have a molar ratio of 10:1 to 1:1.