Interaction of poly(methyl methacrylate) and nafions

Abstract The thermal degradation of Nafion–H, Nafion–K, and the mixture of each of these with poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) has been studied. A mechanism is proposed for the thermal degradation of Nafion–H that involves an initial cleavage of the carbon–sulfur bond leading to SO 2 and OH radical and a carbon‐based radical. This carbon‐based radical then undergoes further degradation. The addition of PMMA to Nafion–H inhibits further degradation of the Nafion carbon‐based radical and instead radical recombination reactions between PMMA fragments and this Nafion radical dominate the reaction scheme. The replacement of the hydrogen in Nafion–H with a potassium (i.e., Nafion–K) produces a much more robust material that does not degrade under conditions similar to those used for Nafion–H. Nafion–K has little effect on the degradation of PMMA.