The Effect of Annealing on sSEBS/Polyrotaxanes Electrolyte Membranes for Direct Methanol Fuel Cells

Solution casting films of sulfonated poly[styrene-b-(ethylene-r-butylene)-b-styrene] copolymer (sSEBS)-based composite membranes that contained different amounts of organic, nanorod-shaped polyrotaxane were annealed at various temperatures for 1 h. The films' properties were characterized with respect to their use as polymer electrolyte membranes in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). Different aspect ratios of polyrotaxane were prepared using the inclusion-complex reaction between $\alpha$-cyclodextrin and poly(ethylene glycol). The presence of the organic polyrotaxane inside the membrane changed the morphology during the membrane preparation and reduced the transport of methanol. The conductivity and methanol permeability of the composite membranes decreased with increasing polyrotaxane content, while the annealing temperature increased. All of the sSEBS-based, polyrotaxane composite membranes annealed at $140^{\circ}C$ showed a higher selectivity parameter, suggesting their potential usage for DMFCs.