Zirconium phosphate (ZrP)-filled Nafion membranes are a class of organo-inorgano composite membranes consisting of nanoparticles of an inorganic filler (ZrP) dispersed within a polymer matrix based on a perfluorosulfonic acid ionomer (Nafion).
Nafion is a sulfonated tetrafluoroethylene-based polymer, with perfluorovinyl ether side chains, terminated with sulfonic superacid groups (Fig. 1) (Mauritz and Moore 2004). According to the many different structural models, the morphology of Nafion membranes consists of hydrophilic channels, made up by the clustering of the sulfonic acid functional groups which are responsible for the proton transport; these channels are delimited by the hydrophobic perfluorinated polymer backbone, which assures thermal, chemical, and mechanical stability, especially at temperatures <80 °C.
Chemical structure of Nafion
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Alberti G, Casciola M (2003) Composite membranes for medium temperature PEM fuel cells. Ann Rev Mater Res 33:129–154
Alberti G, Casciola M, Capitani D, Donnadio A, Narducci R, Pica M, Sganappa M (2007) Novel Nafion–zirconium phosphate nanocomposite membranes with enhanced stability of proton conductivity at medium temperature and high relative humidity. Electrochim Acta 52:8125–8132
Bauer F, Willert-Porada M (2004) Microstructural characterization of Zr-phosphate–Nafion membranes for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) applications. J Membr Sci 233:141–149
Casciola M, Capitani D, Comite A, Donnadio A, Frittella V, Pica M, Sganappa M, Varzi A (2008) Nafion–zirconium phosphate nanocomposite membranes with high filler loadings: conductivity and mechanical properties. Fuel Cells 3–4:217–224
Casciola M, Bagnasco G, Donnadio A, Micoli L, Pica M, Sganappa M, Turco M (2009) Conductivity and methanol permeability of Nafion–zirconium phosphate composite membranes containing high aspect ratio filler particle. Fuel Cells 4:394–400
Clearfield A, Costantino U (1996) Layered metal phosphates and their intercalation chemistry. In: Alberti G, Bein T (eds) Vol. 7 of: comprehensive supramolecular chemistry. Pergamon, Oxford, Ch. 4
Mauritz KA, Moore RB (2004) State of understanding of Nafion. Chem Rev 104:4535–4585
Neburchilov V, Martin J, Wang H, Zhang J (2007) A review of polymer electrolyte membranes for direct methanol fuel cells. J Power Sources 169:221–238
Yang C, Srinivasan S, Bocarsly AB, Tulyani S, Benziger JB (2004) A comparison of physical properties and fuel cell performance of Nafion and zirconium phosphate/Nafion composite membranes. J Membr Sci 237:145–161
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this entry
Cite this entry
Pica, M. (2015). Zirconium-Phosphate (ZrP)-Filled Nafion Membrane. In: Drioli, E., Giorno, L. (eds) Encyclopedia of Membranes. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40872-4_1846-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40872-4_1846-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-40872-4
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Chemistry and Mat. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics