Sungkyunkwan University · Engineering
Professor Dukjoon Kim's research lab specializes in the development of advanced functional materials for sustainable energy applications, with a primary focus on proton and anion exchange membranes for fuel cells and lithium batteries. The lab investigates nanocomposite membranes engineered with rare earth elements (e.g., cerium) and 2D nanomaterials (e.g., graphene oxide, graphitic carbon nitride) to enhance chemical stability, proton conductivity, and radical scavenging capabilities. Key research directions include the design of hybrid electrolytes with tailored ion transport pathways, structural stability, and long-term durability under harsh electrochemical conditions. The lab also explores innovative grafting and crosslinking strategies to optimize membrane performance for next-generation energy conversion and storage devices.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
<sup>•</sup>OH radicals are the main cause of chemical degradation of Nafion membranes in fuel cell operation. Although the cerium ion (Ce<sup>3+/4+</sup>, Ce) is reported as an effective <sup>•</sup>OH radical quencher, its membrane application has critical limitations associated with the reduction of membrane proton conductivity and its leaking. In this study, the Ce-grafted graphitic carbon nitrides (g-C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>) (CNCe) nano-particles are synthesized and embedded in Nafion me
A novel anion exchange membrane was synthesized via crosslinking of the quaternized polyepichlorohydrin (QPECH) by 1-(3-aminopropyl) imidazole grafted poly(arylene ether ketone) (PAEK-API). While the QPECH provided an excellent ion conductive property, the rigid rod-structured PAEK-API played a reinforcing role, along with providing the high conductivity associated with the pendant API group. The chemical structure of QPECH/PAEK-API membranes was identified by <sup>1</sup>H nuclear magnetic reso
Investigation of the collaborative effect of cerium particles embedded in graphene oxide to enhance the chemical stability of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) has been carried out. Synthesis of composite membranes (Nafion-GO/Ce-x) with Nafion solution as a polymer is synthesized by a solution casting method where (x = concentration of composite). The developed hybrid material was characterized by FT-IR and X-ray diffraction (XRD) for its phase identification while the chemical struct
A self-assembled quasi-solid electrolyte with zwitterion and PEG co-grafting enables fast single Li-ion transport through large conducting domains. Its flexible, stable structure ensures high performance and safety in lithium batteries.
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