Electro-Osmotic Drag Effect on the Methanol Permeation for Sulfonated Poly(Ether Ether Ketone) and Nafion117 Membranes

Electro-osmotic drag effect on the methanol permeation was investigated for sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (sPEEK) membrane, and its result was compared with that of Nafion (R) 117 membrane. The electro-osmotic drag coefficient was determined from the limiting current density measured at different temperature. The methanol permeability of sPEEK membrane increased with temperature but its temperature dependence was not as strong as that of Nafion (R) 117 membrane. The methanol permeability or the total methanol flux of Nafion (R) 117 membrane was at least twice higher than that of sPEEK70 membrane (sPEEK membrane with 70% sulfonation degree), as the methanol permeation was highly contributed by the electro-osmotic drag effect. This higher electro-osmotic drag of Nafion (R) 117 membrane is attributed to the bigger ion cluster and waster channel in nano-phase and thus more free water absorption than sPEEK membrane.