Abstract: In the present work, the preparation and characterization of quasi-solid polymer electrolyte membranes based on methacrylic monomers and oligomers, with the addition of organic plasticizers and lithium salt, are described. Noticeable improvements in the mechanical properties by reinforcement with natural cellulose hand-sheets or nanoscale microfibrillated cellulose fibers are also demonstrated. The ionic conductivity of the various prepared membranes is very high, with average values approaching 10-3 S cm-1 at ambient temperature. The electrochemical stability window is wide (anodic breakdown voltages > 4.5 V vs. Li in all the cases) along with good cyclability in lithium cells at ambient temperature. The galvanostatic cycling tests are conducted by constructing laboratory-scale lithium cells using LiFePO4 as cathode and lithium metal as anode with the selected polymer electrolyte membrane as the electrolyte separator. The results obtained demonstrate that UV induced radical photo-polymerization is a well suited method for an easy and rapid preparation of easy tunable quasi-solid polymer electrolyte membranes for energy storage devices.
This is an open access article distributed under the
Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution,
and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Export to BibTeX
MDPI and ACS Style
Nair, J.R.; Chiappone, A.; Destro, M.; Jabbour, L.; Meligrana, G.; Gerbaldi, C. UV-Induced Radical Photo-Polymerization: A Smart Tool for Preparing Polymer Electrolyte Membranes for Energy Storage Devices. Membranes 2012, 2, 687-704.
Nair JR, Chiappone A, Destro M, Jabbour L, Meligrana G, Gerbaldi C. UV-Induced Radical Photo-Polymerization: A Smart Tool for Preparing Polymer Electrolyte Membranes for Energy Storage Devices. Membranes. 2012; 2(4):687-704.
Nair, Jijeesh R.; Chiappone, Annalisa; Destro, Matteo; Jabbour, Lara; Meligrana, Giuseppina; Gerbaldi, Claudio. 2012. "UV-Induced Radical Photo-Polymerization: A Smart Tool for Preparing Polymer Electrolyte Membranes for Energy Storage Devices." Membranes 2, no. 4: 687-704.