Polymer electrolytes based on unsaturated ethylene oxide-segmented polymers

Polymer electrolytes were prepared from LiClO4 and high molecular weight unsaturated ethylene oxide-segmented polymers with the generic formula -[(CH2)(x)CH=CH(CH2)(x)O(CH2CH2O)(y)](n)- ([C(x)pi CxEOy](n)). Synthesized by metathesis polymerization of alpha,omega-dienes that contain oligomeric poly(ethylene oxide) cores, these polymers are tacky, adhere well to glass and metal surfaces, and have glass transition temperatures between -70 and -80 degrees C. Polymers that contain relatively long alkyl or polyether segments are crystalline below room temperature, but adding LiClO4 to the polymers converts them to amorphous polymer electrolytes with room-temperature conductivities (20 degrees C) of approximate to 2 x 10(-5) S/cm. The T(g)s of the materials can befit by a simple model based on the Fox equation, and an analysis of the results indicates that the Li+:monomer repeat unit stoichiometry is 1:1 for polymers with long block lengths, and decreases to 1:2 for polymers with poly(ethylene oxide) segments with less than 4 repeat units.