In this study, nano-TiO2 sulfonated with 1,3-propane sultone (STiO2) was incorporated into the chitosan (CS) matrix for the preparation of CS/STiO2 nanocomposite membranes for fuel cell applications. The grafting of sulfonic acid (–SO3H) groups was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The physicochemical properties of these prepared membranes, such as water uptake, swelling ratio, thermal and mechanical stability, ion exchange capacity and proton conductivity, were determined. The proton conducting groups on the surface of nano-TiO2 can form continuous proton conducting pathways along the CS/STiO2 interface and thus improve the proton conductivity of CS/STiO2 nanocomposite membranes. The CS/STiO2 nanocomposite membrane with 5 wt% of sulfonated TiO2 showed a proton conductivity (0.035 S·cm−1) equal to that of commercial Nafion 117 membrane (0.033 S·cm−1). The thermal and mechanical stability of the nanocomposite membranes were improved because the interfacial interaction between the -SO3H group of TiO2 and the –NH2 group of CS can restrict the mobility of CS chains to enhance the thermal and mechanical stability of the nanocomposite membranes. These CS/STiO2 nanocomposite membranes have promising applications in proton exchange membrane fuel cells.

In this study, nano-TiO2 sulfonated (STiO2) with 1,3-propanesultone was incorporated into the chitosan matrix for the fabrication of chitosan/STiO2 (C/STiO2) nanocomposite membranes. The grafting of sulfonic acid (–SO3H) groups was confirmed with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermos-gravimetric analysis and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The physicochemical properties such as water uptake, swelling ratio, thermal and mechanical stability, ion exchange capacity and proton conductivity of the as prepared membranes were measured. The proton groups on the surface of TiO2 can form continuous proton conducting pathways along the C/STiO2 interface resulting in the improvement of proton conductivity of C/STiO2 nanocomposite membranes. The nanocomposite membrane with 5 % sulfonated TiO2 showed higher proton conductivity (0.035 S·cm-1) than commercial Nafion-117 membrane (0.033 S·cm-1) due to the strong interfacial interactions between -SO3H group of acid and hydroxyl group of TiO2. Further, the –NH2 groups of chitosan restrict the mobility of chitosan chains to enhance the thermal and mechanical stability of the nanocomposite membranes. These C/STiO2 nanocomposite membranes have promising applications in proton exchange membrane fuel cells.