Sulfonic Acid- and Lithium Sulfonate-Grafted Poly(Vinylidene Fluoride) Electrospun Mats As Ionic Liquid Host for Electrochromic Device and Lithium-Ion Battery

Electrospun polymer nanofibrous mats loaded with ionic liquids (ILs) are promising nonvolatile electrolytes with high ionic conductivity. The large cations of ILs are, however, difficult to diffuse into solid electrodes, making them unappealing for application in some electrochemical devices. To address this issue, a new strategy is used to introduce proton conduction into an IL-based electrolyte. Poly­(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (P­(VDF-HFP)) copolymer is functionalized with sulfonic acid through covalent attachment of taurine. The sulfonic acid-grafted P­(VDF-HFP) electrospun mats consist of interconnected nanofibers, leading to remarkable improvement in dimensional stability of the mats. IL-based polymer electrolytes are prepared by immersing the modified mats in 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (BMIM+BF4 –). It is found that the SO3 – groups can have Lewis acid–base interactions with the cations (BMIM+) of IL to promote the dissociation of ILs, and provide additional proton conduction, resulting in significantly improved ionic conductivity. Using this novel electrolyte, polyaniline-based electrochromic devices show higher transmittance contrast and faster switching behavior. Furthermore, the sulfonic acid-grafted P­(VDF-HFP) electrospun mats can also be lithiated, giving additional lithium ion conduction for the IL-based electrolyte, with which Li/LiCoO2 batteries display enhanced C-rate performance.