@article{29760,
  author = {S. S Piril Ertem and Benjamin R Caire and Tsung-Han Tsai and Di Zeng and Melissa A Vandiver and Ahmet Kusoglu and Soenke Seifert and Ryan C Hayward and Adam Z Weber and Andrew M Herring and E. E Bryan Coughlin and Matthew W Liberatore},
  title = {Ion transport properties of mechanically stable symmetric ABCBA pentablock copolymers with quaternary ammonium functionalized midblock},
  abstract = {<p><span>Anion exchange membranes (AEMs) are a promising class of materials for applications that require selective ion transport, such as fuel cells, water purification, and electrolysis devices. Studies of structure–morphology–property relationships of ion-exchange membranes revealed that block copolymers exhibit improved ion conductivity and mechanical properties due to their microphase-separated morphologies with well-defined ionic domains. While most studies focused on symmetric diblock or triblock copolymers, here, the first example of a midblock quaternized pentablock AEM is presented. A symmetric ABCBA pentablock copolymer was functionalized to obtain a midblock brominated polymer. Solution cast films were then quaternized to obtain AEMs with resulting ion exchange capacities (IEC) ranging from 0.4 to 0.9 mmol/g. Despite the relatively low IEC, the polymers were highly conductive (up to 60 mS/cm Br</span><span>−</span><span>at 90 °C and 95%RH) with low water absorption (&lt;25 wt %) and maintained adequate mechanical properties in both dry and hydrated conditions. X-ray scattering and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed formation of cylindrical non-ionic domains in a connected ionic phase.&nbsp;</span></p>},
  year = {2017},
  journal = {Journal of Polymer Science Part B: Polymer Physics},
  volume = {55},
  pages = {612 - 622},
  month = {01/2017},
  doi = {10.1002/polb.24310},
  language = {eng},
}