Composite membrane suitable for use in electrochemical devices
AssigneeLynntech, Inc.
InventorsOliver J. Murphy, Alan J. Cisar
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Abstract
The invention relates to novel inorganic-organic composite membranes especially useful as ionically conducting in electrochemical devices. The composites consist of a polymeric matrix, which may or may not be an ionic conductor in its unfilled form, filled with an inorganic material having a high affinity for water, capable of exchanging cations such as protons, and preferably with a high cation mobility, either on its surface or through its bulk.
Claims68
A method of making a cation-conducting composite membrane comprising the step of impregnating an inorganic oxide proton conductor into the pores of a porous polymer matrix.
A method of making a cation-conducting composite membrane comprising the steps of:
- (a) impregnating the precursor to an oxide proton conductor into the pores of a porous polymer matrix;
- and then
- (1) converting the precursor material into the desired proton conducting oxide.
A method of making a cation-conducting composite membrane comprising the steps of:
- (a) precipitating a mixture of a cation conducting oxide and a polymer matrix from solution;
- and
- (b) fabricating the resulting product into a membrane.
A method of making a cation-conducting composite membrane comprising the steps of:
- (a) converting a soluble precursor to a proton conductive metal oxide to the insoluble oxide in an aqueous solution containing an emulsion or suspension of a polymer;
- and
- (b) simultaneously precipitating the polymer and the metal oxide.
A method of making a cation-conducting composite membrane comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a suspension of an inorganic proton conductor in a solution;
- (b) polymerizing a polymer within the solution;
- (c) separating the solids from the solution;
- (d) pressing the solids into a composite membrane, wherein the polymer is the binder phase of the composite membrane.
A method of making a cation-conducting composite membrane comprising the steps of:
- (a) producing a suspension containing both the polymer matrix and the oxide proton conductor;
- and
- (b) filtering the polymer matrix and the oxide proton conductor onto a removable filter element;
- (c) removing the filtered mass from the removable filter element;
- and
- (d) pressing the filtered mass to form the composite membrane.
A method of making a cation-conducting composite membrane comprising the steps of:
- (a) using a porous polymer matrix as a filter element;
- and
- (b) filling the pores in the porous polymer matrix with an oxide proton conductor by filtering a suspension of the oxide into it.
A method of making a cation-conducting composite membrane comprising the steps of:
- (a) placing the first side of a porous polymer membrane in contact with a concentrated solution of a precursor to an oxide proton conductor;
- (b) placing the second side of the porous polymer membrane in contact with a reactive solution comprising a component that reacts with the precursor component;
- (c) allowing the precursor and reactive components to diffuse into the bulk of the porous polymer membrane from the first and second sides, respectively;
- and
- (d) reacting the precursor component with the reactive component within the bulk of the membrane to form the oxide proton conductor.
A method of making a proton conducting inorganic-organic composite membrane for use in electrochemical devices, comprising the steps of:
- (a) precipitating a mixture of proton conducting metal oxide particles in suspension and polymer binder particles in suspension from a solvent;
- (b) filtering the mixed precipitate onto a removable filter element;
- (c) removing the filtered mass from the removable filter element;
- (d) pressing the filtered mass to form the proton conducting composite membrane.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.