A zinc trifluoromethane sulphonate polymer electrolyte

Conductivity, transport and interfacial studies on an amorphous methoxy-linked poly(ethylene oxide)/Zn(CF3SO3)2 system over the O:Zn range 100:1 to 10:1 are reported. A passivating layer on the zinc electrode has been studied and a convenient technique of electrochemical polishing has been devised to reduce its impedance. Standard ac conductivity and DSC studies have been supplemented by dc polarization measurements using the symmetric cell Zn|polymer electrolyte|Zn. Preliminary results of transference number determination using the Hittorf method suggest that transport of zinc in a concentration gradient is augmented by motion of neutral ionic complexes.