Hybrid composite membranes of chitosan/sulfonated polyaniline/silica as polymer electrolyte membrane for fuel cells

A series of novel ionic cross-linked chitosan (CS) based hybrid nanocomposites were prepared by using polyaniline/nano silica (PAni/SiO2) as inorganic filler and sulfuric acid as an ionic cross-linking agent. The CS-PAni/SiO2 nanocomposites show enhanced mechanical properties and improved oxidative stabilities. These nanocomposites can be effectively used as environmental friendly proton exchange membranes. Incorporation of PAni/SiO2 into CS matrix enhances water uptake and facilitates the phase separation which enables the formation of hydrophilic domains and improves the proton transport. Moreover, the doped polyaniline also provides some additional pathways for proton conduction. The membrane containing 3 wt% loading of PAni/SiO2 in chitosan (CS-PAni/SiO2-3) exhibits high proton conductivity at 80 °C (8.39 × 10−3 S cm−1) in fully hydrated state due to its excellent water retention properties. Moreover, methanol permeability of the ionic cross-linked CS-PAni/SiO2 nanocomposite membranes significantly reduces with the addition of PAni/SiO2 nano particles. The CS-PAni/SiO2-3 composite membrane displays the best overall performance as a polymer electrolyte membrane.