Investigation of Characteristics of Hybrid PEMs from Atomistic Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Molecular dynamics simulations were employed to study the morphological characteristics of hybrid fuel cell membranes based on sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) and sulfonated poly(phenylene oxide) (SPPO) under varied hydration levels. Obtained simulation results showed that by increasing the hydration level of solvated membrane, the sulfonic acid groups attached to polymeric backbones become farther apart and their interactions with positively charged hydronium ions were decreased owing to the stronger solvation of sulfonic acid groups at higher hydration levels.