Fabrication of PVA-based Ion Exchange Membrane for Reverse Electrodialysis Power Generation and Its Characteristic Evaluation

Abstract

In this study, PVA-based profiled IEMs were prepared by mixing an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer （EVOH） and PVA-based polyions, and then their basic properties and RED power generation performance were evaluated. By blending EVOH with a PVA-based block copolymer, we obtained flat-shaped cation and anion exchange membranes （F-CEM and F-AEM） that improve the mechanical strength of IEMs with a high transport number and low membrane resistance. The profiled CEMs （PF-CEMs） were prepared by hot-pressing F-CEMs. The stack using PF-CEMs/F-AEMs showed the maximum power output of 2.07 mW at 7.0 mA of current.