Study of alkaline nanocomposite polymer electrolytes based on PVA–ZrO2–KOH

A novel alkaline nanocomposite polymer electrolyte composed of PVA polymer matrix with nanosized ZrO2 ceramic fillers, KOH and H2O, was prepared by a solution casting method. The characteristic properties of nanocomposite PVA polymer electrolytes with 2–20 wt.% ZrO2 fillers were studied by using a DSC, TGA, X-ray diffractometer (XRD), SEM, and AC impedance method. The PVA polymer electrolyte directly blended with nanosized ZrO2 fillers shows extraordinary ionic conductivity, transport and thermal properties. The highest ionic conductivity value of alkaline nanocomposite PVA polymer electrolyte with 20 wt.% of ZrO2 fillers is around 0.267 S cm−1 at 20 °C and the anionic transport number (t−) is in the range of 0.98–0.99. In this work, it was found that the addition of nano-ZrO2 fillers into the PVA polymer matrix could significantly improve the electrochemical properties of alkaline PVA polymer electrolyte; it can be realized through a simple blend technique.