Porous nanocomposite polymer electrolyte prepared by a non-solvent induced phase separation process

A non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) process was used to prepare a new kind of porous nanocomposite polymer electrolyte using glycerol as non-solvent for poly(vinylidene difluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) copolymer. TiO ₂ nanoparticles were incorporated by in situ hydrolysis of Ti(OC ₄H ₉) ₄ and dispersed uniformly in the polymer matrix. They affected the porous structure of the obtained nanocomposite polymer membranes (NCPMs). When the amount of TiO ₂ arrived at 7.6 wt.%, the NCPM reached the maximum porosity of 70.5%. The resulting nanocomposite polymer electrolyte (NCPE) presents an ionic conductivity of up to 1.98 × 10 ^-3 S · cm ^-1 at room temperature and an apparent activation energy for ion transport of 13.32 kJ · mol ^-1, suggesting its promising application in lithium ion batteries.