Synthesis and Characterization of Sulfonated Graphene Oxide in Polystyrene Ethylene Butylene Polystyrene as Membrane for Microbial Fuel Cell

Ezian Amelya Abdul Malek, Madzlan Aziz

Abstract


A microbial fuel cell (MFC) is a bio-electrochemical system which has gained a lot of attention in recent years as a mode of converting organic waste into electricity. Therefore, in this study a modification was carried out by fabricating n of sulfonated graphene oxide (SGO) with a polymer which is polystyrene ethylene butylene polystyrene (PSEBS) in order to improve the proton conductivity of the membrane. The graphene oxide (GO) was synthesized by using an Improved Hummer’s Method and the SGO was successfully prepared by using sulphuric acid. The sulfonated GO and PSEBS membranes were fabricated using THF as a solvent. The properties of sulfonated GO and SGO-PSEBS were characterized by Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared (ATR-FTIR), Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The SGO was successfully synthesized and confirmed by IR spectroscopy in which peaks corresponding to O=S=O appeared. Based on the EDX from SEM characterizations, they showed that the degree of sulfonation is 1.30%, and about 0.0139 mass% of the sulphur content in the membrane by using XRF. The proton conductivity value for SGO-PSEBS is 1.8634x10-7 Scm-1 obtained by using Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) and showed about 25% of water uptake for this membrane

Keywords


sulfonated graphene oxide; polystyrene ethylene butylene polystyrene; proton conductivity

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References


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