Equilibrium and transport properties of ion-exchange membranes

Abstract Specific properties (ion-exchange capacity, water content, pore volume fraction) and transport properties (counterion transport number and electrical conductivity) have been measured in four commercial cation-exchange membranes loaded with a variety of cations of different nature and charge. Not surprisingly, equivalent conductances are lower than in free solution and transport numbers decrease with valency of the counterion. This behavior is explained by taking into account a “tortuosity factor”, due to a lengthening of the pores across the membrane, except for a membrane with a lower water content and for ions of higher charge, in which electrostatic interactions between mobile a…