Macromolecules
Macromolecules
4 years ago

The Role of Solvating 12-Crown-4 Plasticizer on Dielectric Constant and Ion Conduction of Poly(ethylene oxide) Single-Ion Conductors

The Role of Solvating 12-Crown-4 Plasticizer on Dielectric Constant and Ion Conduction of Poly(ethylene oxide) Single-Ion Conductors
Ralph H. Colby, U Hyeok Choi
The role of solvating plasticizer on lithium ion conduction is investigated for a poly(ethylene oxide)-based single-ion conductor, plasticized with 12 wt % 12-crown-4 (12C4). The addition of 12C4 not only increases the static dielectric constant (εs) but also accelerates the ion rearrangement (α2) and segmental motion (α) compared to the host ionomer. A physical model of electrode polarization is used to estimate number density of simultaneously conducting ions and their mobility. The complex of 12C4 with lithium cation lowers the activation energy of simultaneously conducting ions, increasing the simultaneously conducting ion content by >3×. This is consistent with an initial large increase in εs, which is higher than the prediction from the Landau and Lifshitz mixing rule, reflecting that ion aggregates observed in the host ionomer are solvated by 12 wt % 12C4. Furthermore, the dissolution of the aggregates promotes ion mobility owing to an increase in polymer chain flexibility, with a reduction in glass transition temperature. The plasticization directly boosts ionic conductivity of the plasticized ionomer by ∼5× over the whole temperature range studied, revealing that ion motion is assisted by segmental dynamics.

Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.macromol.7b00467

DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.7b00467

You might also like
Discover & Discuss Important Research

Keeping up-to-date with research can feel impossible, with papers being published faster than you'll ever be able to read them. That's where Researcher comes in: we're simplifying discovery and making important discussions happen. With over 19,000 sources, including peer-reviewed journals, preprints, blogs, universities, podcasts and Live events across 10 research areas, you'll never miss what's important to you. It's like social media, but better. Oh, and we should mention - it's free.

  • Download from Google Play
  • Download from App Store
  • Download from AppInChina

Researcher displays publicly available abstracts and doesn’t host any full article content. If the content is open access, we will direct clicks from the abstracts to the publisher website and display the PDF copy on our platform. Clicks to view the full text will be directed to the publisher website, where only users with subscriptions or access through their institution are able to view the full article.