Preparation and Properties of Novel Sulfonated Poly (phenylene arylene) (SPA) Membranes for Fuel Cell Applications

A series of sulfonated poly(phenylene arylene) membranes were successfully prepared from 2, 5-dichloro-3'-sulfobenzophenone (DCSB) and 2, 2'-bis[4-(4-chlorobenzoyl)phenoxyl] perfluoropropane (BCPPF) through Ni(0)-catalyzed copolymerization. The membranes were obtained by solution casting method. They showed good mechanical strength and almost isotropic swelling behavior. Membrane No.2 with an IEC of 2.0 meg/q showed high polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) performance data of open circuit voltage (OCV) of 0.95 V, cell voltage at 0.5 Acm
^-2
(V
_0.5
=0.74 V), maximum output (W
_max
=0.96 Wcm
^-2
) at 90°C, 80% relative humidity condition.