@article {50016,
	title = {High-performance sultone-modified PVA/PAMPS semi-IPN hydrogels for proton exchange membranes},
	journal = {Journal of Applied Polymer Science},
	volume = {143},
	year = {2026},
	month = {APR},
	type = {Article},
	abstract = {<p>Hydrogel membranes composed of poly(2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid) (PAMPS) and sultone-modified poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) were successfully synthesized and evaluated as promising proton-conducting materials. A key advantage involves the premodification of PVA with 1,3-propane sultone to introduce sulfonic acid groups, thereby imparting proton conductivity to the PVA backbone. This sultone-modified PVA was then physically entangled within a PAMPS cross-linked network to form novel semi-interpenetrating network (semi-IPN) hydrogels. This synergistic design leverages the excellent film-forming and mechanical properties of PVA with the high proton conductivity inherent to PAMPS. The synthesized membranes exhibited robust mechanical properties, with tensile strengths ranging from 5 to 30 MPa and percentage elongations between 200\% and 400\%, depending on their humidity content. These hydrogel membranes demonstrated proton conductivities ranging from 0.6 to 4.3 x 10-2 S cm-1. The activation energy for proton conduction was found to be as low as 3.5 kJ mol-1, significantly lower than that of the commercial benchmark membrane, Nafion 117 (12 kJ mol-1). These findings underscore the potential of these novel PAMPS/sultone-modified PVA semi-IPN hydrogel membranes for advanced fuel cell applications.</p>
},
	keywords = {batteries and fuel cells, functionalization of polymers, Gels, membranes, polyelectrolytes},
	issn = {0021-8995},
	doi = {10.1002/app.70462},
	author = {Patwadkar, Manjusha V. and Illathvalappil, Rajith and Torris, Arun and Francis, Sifa C. and Kurungot, Sreekumar and Badiger, Manohar V.}
}
@article {49864,
	title = {Insight Into the Influence of Salinity on Flow and Flocculation Behavior of Acrylamide-Based Cationic Polyelectrolyte},
	journal = {Journal of Applied Polymer Science},
	volume = {143},
	year = {2026},
	month = {MAR},
	type = {Article},
	abstract = {<p>
	The viscometric behavior of aqueous solutions of acrylamide and acrylamidopropyl trimethylammonium chloride copolymers (AM-co-APTMAC) with varying cationic content under different salinity conditions was studied. Viscometric measurements were employed to determine intrinsic viscosity and quantify the influence of electrostatic interactions on chain conformation. Rheology experiments were performed to probe dynamic flow behavior under shear to obtain insights into polyelectrolyte viscoelastic properties under conditions mimicking industrial processes. Viscometric and rheology data analysis is augmented with insights from NMR relaxation and pulsed field gradient NMR diffusion experiments. Further, flocculation of kaolin suspensions was studied using aqueous solutions of AM-co-APTMAC copolymers with different charge fractions in the presence and absence of salt. The physicochemical insights on the behavior of AM-co-APTMAC polyelectrolytes in solution from this study could be relevant in practical applications, such as plants that use seawater or in cases where the ionic strength of suspensions is high due to salinity in the medium.</p>
},
	keywords = {copolymers, polyelectrolytes, structure property relationships, theory and modeling},
	issn = {0021-8995},
	doi = {10.1002/app.70219},
	author = {Ranganath, Suresha P. and Kurian, Rachna and Torris, Arun and Khairnar, Ajay and Ravindranathan, Sapna and Rajamohanan, P. R. and Badiger, Manohar V. and Wolf, Bernhard A.}
}
