Conductivity of aromatic-based proton exchange membranes at subzero temperatures

Stable proton exchange membrane (PEM) with good proton conductivity at subzero temperatures is important for the development of PEM fuel cell cold start. In this work, subfreezing conductivity was reported for several aromatic-based PEMs including sulfonated polyimides (SPIs) with three values of ion-exchange capacity (IEC), sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) and disulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone) copolymer (SPSU) as well as Nafion® 212. Measurements were performed using the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) technique. The results showed that only fully hydrated SPEEK (IEC, 1.75) and SPSU (IEC, 2.08) had comparable conductivities with Nafion® 212 at subzero temperatures. Considering implement of gas purge before subzero storage of PEM fuel cell, the conductivity for those PEMs humidified by water vapor at activity of 0.75 was also investigated. The state of water in aromatic-based PEMs was quantified by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and its correlation with conductivity of the membrane was also discussed.