Self-Assembly of Ultrathin, Ultrastrong Layered Membranes by Protic Solvent Penetration

J Am Chem Soc. 2024 Feb 7;146(5):3553-3563. doi: 10.1021/jacs.3c14307. Epub 2024 Jan 29.

Abstract

Flexible membranes with ultrathin thickness and excellent mechanical properties have shown great potential for broad uses in solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs), on-skin electronics, etc. However, an ultrathin membrane (<5 μm) is rarely reported in the above applications due to the inherent trade-off between thickness and antifailure ability. We discover a protic solvent penetration strategy to prepare ultrathin, ultrastrong layered films through a continuous interweaving of aramid nanofibers (ANFs) with the assistance of simultaneous protonation and penetration of a protic solvent. The thickness of a pure ANF film can be controlled below 5 μm, with a tensile strength of 556.6 MPa, allowing us to produce the thinnest SPE (3.4 μm). The resultant SPEs enable Li-S batteries to cycle over a thousand times at a high rate of 1C due to the small ionic impedance conferred by the ultrathin characteristic and regulated ionic transportation. Besides, a high loading of the sulfur cathode (4 mg cm-2) with good sulfur utilization was achieved at a mild temperature (35 °C), which is difficult to realize in previously reported solid-state Li-S batteries. Through a simple laminating process at the wet state, the thicker film (tens of micrometers) obtained exhibits mechanical properties comparable to those of thin films and possesses the capability to withstand high-velocity projectile impacts, indicating that our technique features a high degree of thickness controllability. We believe that it can serve as a valuable tool to assemble nanomaterials into ultrathin, ultrastrong membranes for various applications.