Sulfonated Poly(arylene ether sulfone)s with Phosphine Oxide Moieties: A Promising Material for Proton Exchange Membranes

Sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone)s with phosphine oxide moieties (sPESPO) were achieved by polycondensation of bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)phenylphosphine oxide with 3,3'-disulfonate-4,4'-difluorodiphenyl sulfone (SFDPS) and 4-fluorophenyl sulfone (FPSF). Sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone)s (sPES) were also synthesized by polymerization of 4,4'-sulfonyldiphenol with SFDPS and FPSF for comparison. The comparative study demonstrates that the sPESPO ionomers exhibit strong intermolecular interactions and high oxidative stability because of the phosphine oxide groups. Furthermore, the sPESPO membrane and the sPES membrane with an equal ion exchange capacity show much different nanophase separation morphology. As a result, the former shows better properties than the latter. The sPESPO membranes exhibit excellent overall properties. For instance, the sPESPO membrane, with a disulfonation degree of 45%, exhibits high thermal and oxidative stability. Moreover, it shows a water uptake of 30.8% and a swelling ratio of 15.8% as well as a proton conductivity of 0.087 S/cm at 80 degrees C.