Fabrication and characterization of PEO/PPC polymer electrolyte for lithium‐ion battery

Abstract A new poly(propylene carbonate)/poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO/PPC) polymer electrolytes (PEs) have been developed by solution‐casting technique using biodegradable PPC and PEO. The morphology, structure, and thermal properties of the PEO/PPC polymer electrolytes were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, and differential scanning calorimetry methods. The ionic conductivity and the electrochemical stability window of the PEO/PPC polymer electrolytes were also measured. The results showed that the T g and the crystallinity of PEO decrease, and consequently, the ionic conductivity increases because of the addition of amorphous PPC. The PEO/50%PPC/10%LiClO 4 polymer electrolyte possesses good properties such as 6.83 × 10 −5 S cm −1 of ionic conductivity at room temperature and 4.5 V of the electrochemical stability window. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010