A method of making a nanostructure-reinforced composite comprises providing matrix particles in a reactor; fluidizing the matrix particles; introducing a nanostructure material into the reactor; homogeneously dispersing the nanostructure material; uniformly depositing the nanostructure material on the matrix particles to form a composite powder; generating a nanostructure on the matrix particles from the nanostructure material; and processing the composite powder to form the nanostructure-reinforced composite having a matrix formed from the matrix particles. The nanostructures are evenly distributed in the matrix of the nanostructure-reinforced composite.

The membrane electrode assembly (MEA) of the present invention is a fuel cell MEA including an anion exchange membrane and a catalyst layer disposed on the surface of the membrane. In the MEA, the anion exchange membrane is an anion-conducting polymer electrolyte membrane in which a graft chain having anion conducting ability is graft-polymerized on a substrate formed of a skived film of ultra-high molecular weight polyolefin. This MEA has various superior properties for achieving an improvement in the power output of an anion exchange PEFC compared to conventional MEAs.

A surface treatment liquid capable of making a surface of a treatment target hydrophilic or hydrophobic without including a resin having a coating film formation property, and a surface treatment method using the surface treatment liquid. The surface treatment liquid includes a resin, a solvent and a strong acid having a pKa of 1 or less. The resin includes a functional group I that is at least one of a hydroxyl group, a cyano group, and a carboxyl group, and a functional group II that is a hydrophilic group or a hydrophobic group other than the functional group I.

Embodiments of the present invention relate to methods for preparing high optical density solutions of nanoparticle, such as nanoplates, silver nanoplates or silver platelet nanoparticles, and to the solutions and substrates prepared by the methods. The process can include the addition of stabilizing agents (e.g., chemical or biological agents bound or otherwise linked to the nanoparticle surface) that stabilize the nanoparticle before, during, and/or after concentration, thereby allowing for the production of a stable, high optical density solution of silver nanoplates. The process can also include increasing the concentration of silver nanoplates within the solution, and thus increasing the solution optical density.

The invention relates to a method for preparing a polymeric material doped with at least one first metal element and at least one second metal element, said at least one first metal element and said at least one second metal element being identical or different from each other, said method comprising: a) a step for copolymerization of at least one first monomer comprising at least one first metal element and of at least one second monomer comprising at least one chelating group of at least one second metal element, in return for which a polymeric material is obtained comprising recurrent units from the polymerization of said first monomer, said recurrent units comprise said at least one first metal element and comprising recurrent units from the polymerization of said second monomer, said recurrent units comprising chelating groups of at least one second metal element; and when said first metal element is different from said second metal element, said method further comprising a step b) for putting the material obtained in step a) in contact with a solution comprising said at least second metal element, in return for which said at least second metal element is complexed with the aforementioned chelating groups, this step b) being optional when said first metal element and said second metal element are identical.

A composite ion exchange membrane comprising components (a) and (b): (a) a membrane layer comprising ionic groups, two opposing surfaces and optionally a porous support; (b) a layer comprising sulpho groups bound to at least one of the at least two opposing surfaces of the membrane layer (a);
wherein the layer comprising sulpho groups has a thickness of less than 100 nm and the composite ion exchange membrane has a surface zeta potential of 0 to 7.5 mV.

A method of making monovalent and multivalent anion selective membrane. Such membrane can be used for electrodialysis (ED) operation and applied towards the important Cl.sup.SO.sub.4.sup.2 separation in lithium extraction. The membrane thickness is much less than 100 m, preferably less than 50 m, more preferably less than 40 m, and most preferably 20-30 m.

An ion conducting polymeric composition mixture comprises a copolymer of styrene and vinylbenzyl-R.sub.s. R.sub.s is selected from the group consisting of imidazoliums, pyridiniums, pyrazoliums, pyrrolidiniums, pyrroliums, pyrimidiums, piperidiniums, indoliums, and triaziniums. The composition contains 10%-90% by weight of vinylbenzyl-R.sub.s. The composition can further comprise a polyolefin comprising substituted polyolefins, a polymer comprising cyclic amine groups, a polymer comprising at least one of a phenylene group and a phenyl group, a polyamide, and/or the reaction product of a constituent having two carbon-carbon double bonds. The composition can be in the form of a membrane. In a preferred embodiment, the membrane is a Helper Membrane that increases the faradaic efficiency of an electrochemical cell into which the membrane is incorporated, and also allows product formation at lower voltages than in cells without the Helper Membrane.

A method of making a nanostructure-reinforced composite comprises providing matrix particles in a reactor; fluidizing the matrix particles; introducing a nanostructure material into the reactor; homogeneously dispersing the nanostructure material; uniformly depositing the nanostructure material on the matrix particles to form a composite powder; generating a nanostructure on the matrix particles from the nanostructure material; and processing the composite powder to form the nanostructure-reinforced composite having a matrix formed from the matrix particles. The nanostructures are evenly distributed in the matrix of the nanostructure-reinforced composite.

The invention relates to: anion exchange blend membranes consisting the following blend components: a halomethylated polymer (a polymer with (CH.sub.2)x-CH2-Hal groups, Hal=F, Cl, Br, I; x=0-12), which is quaternised with a tertiary or a n-alkylated/n-arylated imidazole, an N-alkylated/N-arylated benzimidazole or an N-alkylated/N-arylated pyrazol to form an anion exchanger polymer. an inert matrix polymer in which the anion exchange polymer is embedded and which is optionally covalently crosslinked with the halomethylated precursor of the anion exchanger polymer, a polyethyleneglycol with epoxide or halomethyl terminal groups which are anchored by reacting with NH-groups of the base matrix polymer using convalent cross-linkingoptionally an acidic polymer which forms with the anion-exchanger polymer an ionic cross-linking (negative bound ions of the acidic polymer forming ionic cross-linking positions relative to the positive cations of the anion-exchanger polymer)optionally a sulphonated polymer (polymer with sulphate groups SO2Me, Me=any cation), which forms with the halomethyl groups of the halomethylated polymer convalent crosslinking bridges with sulfinate S-alkylation. The invention also relates to a method for producing said membranes, to the use of said membranes in electrochemical energy conversion processes (e.g. Redox-flow batteries and other flow batteries, PEM-electrolyses, membrane fuel cells), and in other membrane methods (e.g. electrodialysis, diffusion dialysis).