A review on anion exchange membranes for fuel cells: Anion-exchange polyelectrolytes and synthesis strategies

The energy distribution of the world is in a critical transition from traditional fossil fuel to new clean energy. Actually, the fuel cell is favored by researchers as an efficient and clean energy conversion equipment. The anion exchange membranes (AEMs) with excellent performance and long service life will become the development trend of alkaline fuel cells in the future. Compared with proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), its advantages of affordable price, work safety, and non-precious metal participation are widely favored by researchers. This paper reviews the performance of characteristics, synthesis methods, modification methods, and alkaline stability protection of anion-exchange polyelectrolytes (AEPs), and the current research and development status of AEPs used in AEMs are summarized. The evaluation and comparison of different types of AEPs and AEMs based on different AEPs are put forward. This review is expected to further deepen the understanding of AEPs in AEMFC. • Multiple cations deserve further attention. • The influence of backbone on AEPs stability needs to be further explored. • The compatibility between backbone and cation may affect AEM properties. • Polymer structure design also affects the stability of AEMs.