Highly conducting solid electrolyte films based on bivalent cations (Zn, Fe, and Ni)/oxidized PVA composites

Poly (viny1 alcohol) (PVA) is partially oxidized to form oxidized PVA (OPVA) that chelates efficiently with bivalents metals ion (zinc, iron, and nickel chlorides) composites. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) results and density-functional (DFT) theory suggest that the OPVA are formed by keto-enol tautomerism and not isolated ketone groups. X-ray diffractograms (XRD) of the composites showed an enhancement in the crystallinity that could be attributed to good chelation of OPVA with metals chlorides and the formation of a significantly high number of metal clusters following the process of chelation. The homogenous mixing morphology and good hydrophilic character were confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and contact angle values, respectively. The incorporation of nickel or ferrous chlorides onto the OPVA matrix improved the electric and optical absorption properties better compared with zinc chloride. This suggested the highest level of chelation and successful preparation of a high conductive electrolyte film based on the OPVA matrix.