Evidence of elongated polymeric aggregates in Nafion

L. Rubatat (1) , A.L. Rollet (2) , G. Gebel (3) , Olivier Diat (4)

1 IPREM - Institut des sciences analytiques et de physico-chimie pour l'environnement et les materiaux
2 LI2C - Liquides Ioniques et Interfaces Chargées
3 SPRAM - UMR 5819 - Structures et propriétés d'architectures moléculaire
4 CEA-LETI - Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives - Laboratoire d'Electronique et de Technologie de l'Information

Small-angle X-ray and neutron-scattering techniques have been used to probe the structure of swollen Nation membranes in the range 10-10000 Å. From analyzing the scattering data as a function of the polymer volume fraction and using a contrast variation method for the neutron experiments, we suggest a new structural model of Nation in the hydrated state. It is based on the aggregation of the ionomer chains into elongated polymeric bundles with a diameter on the order of 40 Å and a length larger than 1000 Å, surrounded by the electrolyte solution.

Domaines: Physique [physics]

L. Rubatat, A.L. Rollet, G. Gebel, Olivier Diat. Evidence of elongated polymeric aggregates in Nafion. Macromolecules, 2002, 35 (10), pp.4050-4055. ⟨10.1021/ma011578b⟩. ⟨hal-01560410⟩