Proton conducting membrane and its application

摘要

Proton-conducting polymer membranes based on polyazoles are obtained by making a solution or dispersion of aromatic tetra-amine and aromatic polycarboxylic acid(s) in polyphosphoric acid, coating the mixture onto a support and heating under inert gas. Proton-conducting polymer membranes based on polyazoles are obtained by: (A) mixing aromatic tetra-amino compounds with aromatic carboxylic acids with at least two carboxylic acid groups, or their esters, in polyphosphoric acid to form a solution and/or dispersion; (B) coating the mixture onto a support; (C) heating under inert gas at up to 350 (preferably up to 280)[deg]C, to form a polyazole; and (D) treatment to form a self-supporting membrane. Independent claims are also included for: (a) electrodes with a proton-conducting polyazole-based coating obtained by the above process; (b) membrane-electrode units containing at least one electrode and at least one membrane as described; (c) membrane-electrode units containing at least one electrode as in (a) and at least one membrane as described; and (d) fuel cells containing these membrane-electrode units.