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Title: Inherent Acidity of Perfluorosulfonic Acid Ionomer Dispersions and Implications for Ink Aggregation

Abstract

Perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) dispersions are used as components in a variety of electrochemical technologies, particularly in fuel-cell catalyst-layer inks. In this paper, we characterize dispersions of a common PFSA, Nafion, as well as inks of Nafion and carbon. It is shown that solvent choice affects a dispersion’s measured pH, which is found to scale linearly with Nafion loading. Dispersions in water-rich solvents are more acidic than those in propanol-rich solvents: a 90% water versus 30% water dispersion can have up to a 55% measured proton deviation. Furthermore, because electrostatic interactions are a function of pH, these differences affect how particles aggregate in solution. Finally, despite having different water contents, all inks studied demonstrate the same particle size and surface charge trends as a function of pH, thus providing insights into the relative influence of solvent and pH effects on these properties.

Authors:
 [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [2]
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  1. Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Dept. of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering; Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Energy Technologies Area
  2. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Energy Technologies Area
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Sustainable Transportation Office. Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technologies Office; National Science Foundation (NSF)
OSTI Identifier:
1471043
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC02-05CH11231; DGE 1106400
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Journal of Physical Chemistry. B, Condensed Matter, Materials, Surfaces, Interfaces and Biophysical Chemistry
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 122; Journal Issue: 31; Journal ID: ISSN 1520-6106
Publisher:
American Chemical Society
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY

Citation Formats

Berlinger, Sarah A., McCloskey, Bryan D., and Weber, Adam Z. Inherent Acidity of Perfluorosulfonic Acid Ionomer Dispersions and Implications for Ink Aggregation. United States: N. p., 2018. Web. doi:10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b06493.
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Berlinger, Sarah A., McCloskey, Bryan D., & Weber, Adam Z. Inherent Acidity of Perfluorosulfonic Acid Ionomer Dispersions and Implications for Ink Aggregation. United States. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b06493
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Berlinger, Sarah A., McCloskey, Bryan D., and Weber, Adam Z. Wed . "Inherent Acidity of Perfluorosulfonic Acid Ionomer Dispersions and Implications for Ink Aggregation". United States. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b06493. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1471043.
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@article{osti_1471043,
title = {Inherent Acidity of Perfluorosulfonic Acid Ionomer Dispersions and Implications for Ink Aggregation},
author = {Berlinger, Sarah A. and McCloskey, Bryan D. and Weber, Adam Z.},
abstractNote = {Perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) dispersions are used as components in a variety of electrochemical technologies, particularly in fuel-cell catalyst-layer inks. In this paper, we characterize dispersions of a common PFSA, Nafion, as well as inks of Nafion and carbon. It is shown that solvent choice affects a dispersion’s measured pH, which is found to scale linearly with Nafion loading. Dispersions in water-rich solvents are more acidic than those in propanol-rich solvents: a 90% water versus 30% water dispersion can have up to a 55% measured proton deviation. Furthermore, because electrostatic interactions are a function of pH, these differences affect how particles aggregate in solution. Finally, despite having different water contents, all inks studied demonstrate the same particle size and surface charge trends as a function of pH, thus providing insights into the relative influence of solvent and pH effects on these properties.},
doi = {10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b06493},
journal = {Journal of Physical Chemistry. B, Condensed Matter, Materials, Surfaces, Interfaces and Biophysical Chemistry},
number = 31,
volume = 122,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed Jul 18 00:00:00 EDT 2018},
month = {Wed Jul 18 00:00:00 EDT 2018}
}
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https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcb.8b06493
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    Works referencing / citing this record:

    Fuel-Cell Catalyst-Layer Resistance via Hydrogen Limiting-Current Measurements
    journal, January 2019

    • Schuler, Tobias; Chowdhury, Anamika; Freiberg, Anna T.
    • Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 166, Issue 7
    • DOI: 10.1149/2.0031907jes

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    Nafion Ionomer Dispersion in Mixtures of 1‐Propanol and Water Based on the Martini Coarse‐Grained Model
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    • Mabuchi, Takuya; Huang, Sheng‐Feng; Tokumasu, Takashi
    • Journal of Polymer Science, Vol. 58, Issue 3
    • DOI: 10.1002/pol.20190101

    Layer Formation from Polymer Carbon-Black Dispersions
    journal, December 2018

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