Highly proton-conducting self-humidifying microchannels generated by copolymer brushes on a scaffold.
Filling in the gaps: Macroporous silicon membranes modified with sulfonated polymer brushes have been synthesized by pore-filling surface polymerization (see picture) to give proton-conducting channels with tailor-made, finely tuned physicochemical characteristics. These membranes display high conductivity values (ca. 10(-2) S cm(-1)) regardless of the humidity, thus surpassing the performance of nafion.
Yameen
Basit
B
Max-Planck-Institut für Polymerforschung, Ackermannweg 10-55128 Mainz, Germany.
Kaltbeitzel
Anke
A
Langer
Andreas
A
Müller
Frank
F
Gösele
Ulrich
U
Knoll
Wolfgang
W
Azzaroni
Omar
O