Generation of high purity hydrogen using electrochemical splitting of water is one of the most promising methods for sustainable fuel production. The materials to be used as solid-state electrolytes for alkaline water electrolyzer require high thermochemical stability against hydroxide ion attack in alkaline environment during the operation of electrolysis. In this study, two quaternary ammonium-tethered aromatic polymers were synthesized and investigated for anion exchange membrane (AEM)-based alkaline water electrolyzer. The membranes properties including ion exchange capacity (IEC), water uptake, swelling degree, and anion conductivity were studied. The membranes composed of all C–C bond polymer backbones and flexible side chain terminated by cation head groups exhibited remarkably good chemical stability by maintaining structural integrity in 1 M NaOH solution at 95 °C for 60 days. Initial electrochemical performance and steady-state operation performance were evaluated, and both membranes showed a good stabilization of the cell voltage during the steady-state operation at the constant current density at 200 mA/cm². Although both membranes in current form require improvement in mechanical stability to afford better durability in electrolysis operation, the next generation AEMs based on this report could lead to potentially viable AEM candidates which can provide high electrolysis performance under alkaline operating condition.

使用水的电化学分解产生高纯度氢是可持续燃料生产的最有前途的方法之一。用作碱性水电解槽的固态电解质的材料在电解操作期间需要高的热化学稳定性，以抵抗碱性环境中的氢氧根离子侵蚀。在这项研究中，合成了两种季铵系芳族聚合物，并研究了基于阴离子交换膜（AEM）的碱性水电解槽。研究了膜的性能，包括离子交换容量（IEC），吸水率，溶胀度和阴离子电导率。由所有C-C键聚合物主链和阳离子侧基封端的柔性侧链组成的膜通过在1 M NaOH溶液中于95°C保持60天的结构完整性，表现出非常好的化学稳定性。评价了初始电化学性能和稳态操作性能，并且两种膜均在恒定电流密度为200 mA / cm的情况下在稳态操作过程中均显示出良好的电池电压稳定性。²。尽管目前两种形式的膜都需要提高机械稳定性，以在电解操作中提供更好的耐久性，但基于此报告的下一代AEM可能会导致潜在可行的AEM候选物，从而在碱性操作条件下提供较高的电解性能。