Proton-conducting Microcrystalline Cellulose Doped with Imidazole. Thermal and Electrical Properties

•A microcrystalline cellulose was doped with imidazole molecules•Thermal and electrical properties of newly synthesized material were determined•The doped cellulose exhibits four times higher conductivity than a pure cellulose•The highest proton conductivity of about 2 × 10−4 S/m was measured at 160 °C•The thermal stability was determined to be in the range from 110 to about 150 °C

ABSTRACTA new biodegradable polymeric material (Cell-Im) consisting of microcrystalline cellulose (Cell) and imidazole (Im) dopant was successfully synthesized. The thermal properties and proton conductivity of Cell-Im were determined and compared with that of pure microcrystalline cellulose. It was found that the Cell-Im exhibits close to four orders of magnitude higher conductivity than a pure cellulose sample, up to approximately 2 × 10−4 S/m at 160 °C under anhydrous conditions. Thermal stability of Cell-Im was confirmed above water boiling point in a temperature range from 110 to about 150 °C. The Cell-Im is inexpensive to obtain, non-hazardous and environmentally friendly and can have potential for possible application as a solid electrolyte in electrochemical devices.

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