title: Liquid methanol under a static electric field.
abstract: We report on an ab initio molecular dynamics study of liquid methanol under the effect of a static electric field. We found that the hydrogen-bond structure of methanol is more robust and persistent for field intensities below the molecular dissociation threshold whose value (≈0.31 V/Å) turns out to be moderately larger than the corresponding estimate obtained for liquid water. A sustained ionic current, with ohmic current-voltage behavior, flows in this material for field intensities above 0.36 V/Å, as is also the case of water, but the resulting ionic conductivity (≈0.40 S cm(-1)) is at least one order of magnitude lower than that of water, a circumstance that evidences a lower efficiency of proton transfer processes. We surmise that this study may be relevant for the understanding of the properties and functioning of technological materials which exploit ionic conduction, such as direct-methanol fuel cells and Nafion membranes.
authors: Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR 7590, IMPMC, F-75005 Paris, France.
authors: Giuseppe
authors: G
authors: Cassone
authors: Università degli Studi di Messina, Dipartimento di Fisica e di Scienze della Terra, Contrada Papardo, 98166 Messina, Italy.
authors: Paolo V
authors: PV
authors: Giaquinta
authors: CNR-IPCF, Viale Ferdinando Stagno d'Alcontres 37, 98158 Messina, Italy.
authors: Franz
authors: F
authors: Saija
authors: Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR 7590, IMPMC, F-75005 Paris, France.
authors: A Marco
authors: AM
authors: Saitta