Effects of Crosslinker Concentration on Dynamic Mechanical Properties and Ionic Conductivity of Sodium Polyacrylate Electrolytes
摘要
This study investigates the effect of N,N′-methylene bis acrylamide (MBA) crosslinker concentration on the thermal, dynamic mechanical properties and ionic conductivity of sodium polyacrylate (PANa) hydrogels. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) revealed a relationship between MBA concentration and glass transition temperature (Tg). While uncrosslinked PANa exhibited a Tg of 3.88 °C, the addition of 0.3% MBA significantly increased Tg to 14.18 °C, indicating the restricted chain mobility due to crosslinking. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) complemented the DSC findings, revealing that PANa crosslinked with 0.3% and 0.5% MBA exhibited higher storage (G′) and loss (G″) modulus compared to uncrosslinked PANa, confirming an enhanced mechanical strength. Furthermore, the influence of MBA crosslinker concentration on gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) performance was evaluated. Optimizing the MBA concentration to 0.5%mol AA monomer a GPE with a high ionic conductivity of 31.74 mS/cm was obtained. These results highlight the importance of optimizing MBA concentration to achieve a balance between mechanical strength and ionic conductivity in PANa hydrogels, as exceeding an optimal concentration can lead to compromised network integrity and performance.