Progress in constructing high-performance anion exchange Membrane: Molecular design, microphase controllability and In-device property

Hydrogen currently holds great promise as an attractive energy carrier due to decarbonization. With low -temperature devices such as AEMWE and AEMFC, hydrogen can be produced sustainably and utilized effi-ciently toward a green and cost-effective energy society. Anion exchange membrane (AEM), the core component that plays a role of hydroxide conducting and fuel crossover blocking, directly affects the performance and lifespan of AEMWE and AEMFC. Understanding the mechanism and relationships between molecular structure, physical property, and chemical micro-environment are critical to the rational design and development of AEM technology. This review provides a wide scope of the AEM category and a comparative investigation of AEM ionic conductivity and durability. Starting from the design and modification of N-cations, hydrocarbon back-bones with de-novo topology by molecular engineering, and linkage wisdom, to the consistency of microphase, critical principles are explored for the AEM construction. Subsequently, the cell performance and durability of AEMFC and AEMWE with practical operating modes are investigated, which puts forward different requirements of AEM property. The state-of-art research progress and bottleneck issues of the AEM community are drawn in this review comprehensively.

Automated summary

Hydrogen is a promising energy carrier for decarbonization. Anion exchange membrane (AEM) is a critical component for AEMWE and AEMFC, and understanding its molecular structure, physical property, and chemical micro-environment is essential for rational design and development of AEM technology. This review comprehensively summarizes the wide scope of AEM category, investigates AEM ionic conductivity and durability, and highlights the research progress and bottleneck issues in the AEM community.