Project Info
Tuning Anion Exchange Membranes for Applications in Water or Energy
Andrew Herring
aherring@mines.edu
Until recently there were only limited commercial anion exchange membranes available, because the chemical and mechanical stability of these materials is challenged by the environments in which they must operate. We have shown that triblock co-polymers with polyethylene backbones and advanced cationic functionalities can overcome these issues while still showing very high performance. Because the design space is so huge there is still much scope to tune these materials towards applications either in water desalination or in energy conversion.
More Information:
Grand Challenge: Provide access to clean water
“Anion-exchange membranes in electrochemical energy systems.” J.R. Varcoe, P. Atanassov, D. Dekel, A.M. Herring, M. Hickner, P.A. Kohl, A. Kucernak, W. Mustain, K. Nijmeijer, K. Scott, T. Xu and L. Zhuang, Energy and Environmental Science, 2014, 7, 3135 – 3191.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/C4EE01303D
“A Polyethylene-based Triblock Copolymer Anion Exchange Membrane with High Conductivity and Practical Mechanical Properties.” N.C. Buggy, Y. Du, M.-C. Kuo, K.A. Ahrens, J.S. Wilkinson, S. Seifert, E.B. Coughlin,* and A.M. Herring*, ACS Applied Polymer Materials, 2020, 2, 1294 – 1303.
https://doi.org/10.1021/acsapm.9b01182
Primary Contacts:
Prof. Andrew M. Herring
Ivy Wu - Graduate student
Student Preparation
Qualifications
Ata minimum freshman chemistry and organic chemistry laboratory classes.
TIME COMMITMENT (HRS/WK)
4
SKILLS/TECHNIQUES GAINED
Polymer synthesis and characterization. Single cell device integration and assessment.
MENTORING PLAN
Weekly group meetings and interactions with Prof. Herring, direct supervision by graduate student.
PREFERRED STUDENT STATUS
Junior
Senior