Honors Theses
Date of Award
Spring 5-10-2025
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Chemistry and Biochemistry
First Advisor
Jason Ritchie
Second Advisor
Ryan Fortenberry
Third Advisor
Nathan Hammer
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
Anhydrous hydroxide ion (OH-) conducting polymer electrolytes composed of a 1-methyl-pyrrolidinium (1mp) head group linked to various MePEGn (n = 3, 7, 12) backbones were prepared. We have examined the structure of these anion exchange membranes to observe how the structure of the electrolyte affects the observed ionic conductivity. The structural parameters investigated were polymer length, viscosity, fractional free volume (FFV), and volume fraction of PEG (Vf,PEG), and each polymer varied in these properties. Through a comparison of the conductivity and structural parameters in the MePEGn-based anion electrolytes, we have shown that each of these structural properties weakly affects the observed ionic conductivity. These results seem to indicate that hydroxyl conductivity is independent of PEG polymer rearrangement in these particular electrolytes, and the polyether backbone plays a limited role in OH- solvation and coordination. Walden plots indicated subionic behavior and a temperature-dependent extent of ion-pairing in our electrolytes.
Recommended Citation
Gregory, Athan M., "Effects of Structure of MePEGn Polymers on Hydroxide Conductivity in Anhydrous Anionic Exchange Membranes" (2025). Honors Theses. 3199.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/3199
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