Influence of Electrostatic Interactions on Chain Dynamics and Morphological Development in Perfluorosulfonate Ionomer Membranes

ABSTRACTSeveral high temperature methods of processing Nafion® have been developed using various alkylammonium ion forms of the ionomer, and the choice of counterion has been shown to have a significant effect on the thermal and mechanical properties of this material. In particular, it has been shown that neutralization gives rises to two high-temperature mechanical relaxations as observed in dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). While several studies in the literature have attempted to explain the molecular origins of these mechanical relaxations, the assignments were based primarily on limited DMA results and have at times been contradictory. The study presented here is a fundamental investigation into the molecular origins of the thermally induced morphological relaxations and dynamics of alkylammonium forms of Nafion® membranes as studied by variable temperature small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) and solid-state 19F NMR spectroscopy. The intensity of the small-angle ionomer peak at ca. q = 2 nm–1 was monitored as a function of temperature for each alkylammonium neutralized sample in unoriented and oriented states. In the case of the oriented samples, the degree of anisotropic scattering from the oriented ionomer morphology was quantified using the Hermann's orientation function and monitored as a function of temperature. Changes in intensity of the ionomer peak and the Hermann's parameter as a function of temperature were shown to correlate well with relaxations observed in DMA. Several variable temperature solid-state 19F NMR techniques (including spin diffusion, side-band analysis and T1ρ experiments) were used to investigate the dynamics of the Nafion® chains. Side band analysis indicated that the side-chain is more mobile than the main chain and that the mobility is greatly affected by the size of the counterion. Changes in side-band intensity as a function of temperature were shown to correlate well with DMA data. Results from T1ρ experiments show strong counterion dependence and suggest coupled main- and side-chain motions. A two-component relaxation process was also observed for the main-chain fluorines. The results of the NMR investigations, along with the SAXS data, have led to the development of a more detailed description of the dynamics of Nafion® and the molecular origins of the mechanical relaxations. With this information, the continuing goal to determine how the strength of the electrostatic interactions in perfluorosulfonate ionomers affects the chain dynamics and developing morphology may be realized for the purpose of controlling the morphology to create more efficient ionomeric membrane materials.