Fast measurement of methanol concentration in ionic liquids by potential step method.

The development of direct methanol fuel cells required the attention to the electrolyte. A good electrolyte should not only be ionic conductive but also be crossover resistant. Ionic liquids could be a promising electrolyte for fuel cells. Monitoring methanol was critical in several locations in a direct methanol fuel cell. Conductivity could be used to monitor the methanol content in ionic liquids. The conductivity of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate had a linear relationship with the methanol concentration. However, the conductivity was significantly affected by the moisture or water content in the ionic liquid. On the contrary, potential step could be used in sensing methanol in ionic liquids. This method was not affected by the water content. The sampling current at a properly selected sampling time was proportional to the concentration of methanol in 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate. The linearity still stood even when there was 2.4 M water present in the ionic liquid.