• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.608-614
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• 2009

The cation-exchange membrane which was sulfonated styrene-ethylene/buthlene-styrene(SEBS) block copolymer containing the high impact polystyrene (HIPS) was prepared via post-sulfonation and casting method using the epoxidized polybutadiene and divinylbenzene as crosslinking agents. Post-sulfonation was carried out with sulfuric acid as sulfonating agent and silver sulfate as initiator in the nitrogen atmosphere. The basic properties of membranes, degree of sulfonation (DS), water uptake, ion-exchange capacity (IEC), electrical resistance, and modulus have been examined. DS of membrane increased with increasing the sulfonation time. The maximum DS of membrane containing 10 wt% HIPS was 83.6 %. The water uptake and IEC of membranes gradually increased as increasing the DS. The maximum water uptake and IEC of membranes were 43.8 % and 1.14 meq/g, respectively. The lowest electrical resistance of membrane containing the 20 wt% HIPS was $83\;\Omega{\cdot}cm^2$. The electrical conductivity of membrane containing 10 wt% HIPS was $1.22\times10^{-4}S/cm$. The modulus of membrane increased with increasing DS and these values were 153 and $204\;kgf/cm^2$ before and after sulfonation, respectively.