Comparative studies on performance of radiation-induced and thermal cross-linked ion-exchange membrane for water electrolysis

Radiation-induced and thermal cross-linked sulfonated poly(ether sulfone) (SPS)–sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPK) composite ion-exchange membranes (SPS/SPK(γ) and SPS/SPK(T), respectively) were prepared. Their performances for water electrolysis were comparatively assessed. Thermal cross-linked membrane (SPS/SPK(T)) showed cross-linking of part functional groups (–SO3H) and thus deterioration in membrane conductivity. While, radiation-induced cross-linked membrane (SPS/SPK(γ)) avoided any cross-linking between functional groups and thus conductivity. Electrolysis performances of these membranes were evaluated in comparison with Nafion117 membrane. Relatively low current efficiency (CE) for SPS/SPK and SPS/SPK(T) membranes was due to their high mass transfer (water) via electro-osmotic drag, which was negligible for SPS/SPK(γ) membrane. SPS/SPK(γ) membrane exhibited comparable stabilities and water splitting performance with Nafion117 membrane, which revealed its suitability as substitute for electrochemical applications.