Oleophilic Nature Research Articles

Oil Sorption Properties of Centrifugally Spun Polyisobutylene-Based Thermoplastic Elastomer Microfibers

Fiber-based sorbent materials are an essential part of containing oil spills, thus preventing ecological damage. Poly(styrene-b-isobutylene-b-styrene) thermoplastic elastomer fibers were successfully produced by centrifugal spinning. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the fibers were bead free and smooth-surfaced, with an average fiber diameter of 5.9 ± 2.3 μm. Contact angle measurements proved the highly hydrophobic (water contact angle of 126.8 ± 6.4°) and highly oleophilic nature of the fiber mat. The sorption and retention capacities of the fiber mat were tested for various oils and benchmarked against polypropylene as the industry standard and polystyrene, which is widely used in the literature. The oil uptake of the fiber mat showed a strong correlation with the viscosity of the oil, resulting in sorption capacities of 10.1 ± 0.8 g/g for sunflower oil, 19.9 ± 2.1 g/g for motor oil, and 23.8 ± 1.8 g/g for gear oil. Oil–water separation tests were also conducted, resulting in ~100% oil removal. The thermoplastic elastomer fiber mat outperformed the industry standard; however, the polystyrene fiber mat demonstrated the best oil sorption performance.

Effects of expanded graphite’s structural and elemental characteristics on its oil and heavy metal sorption properties

Expanded graphite has promising potential environmental applications due to its porous structure and oleophilic nature, which allow it to absorb large quantities of oil. The material is produced by intercalating graphite and applying heat to convert the intercalant into gas to cause expansion between the layers in the graphite. Using different intercalants and temperature conditions results in varying properties of expanded graphite. This work has proven that the sorption properties of commercial expanded graphite differ significantly due to the material’s structural and elemental characteristics, which can be attributed to the intercalation method. This resulted in various degrees of exfoliation of the graphite and possible functionalisation of the graphene sheets within the structure. This affected the material's sorption capacity and its affinity for heavy metal sorption by incorporating selectivity towards the sorption of certain metals. It was found that sample EG3, which underwent a less harsh expansion, exhibited lower porosity than EG1, and thus, the sample absorbed less oil at 37.29 g/g compared to the more expanded samples EG1 and EG2 with 55.16 g/g and 48.82 g/g, respectively. However, it was able to entrap a wider variety of metal particles compared to EG1 and EG2, possibly due to its smaller cavities allowing for a capillary effect between the graphene sheets and greater Van der Waals forces. A second possibility is that ionic or coordination complexes could form with certain metals due to the possible functionalisation of the expanded graphite during the intercalation process. This would be in addition to coordination between the metals and expanded graphite carbon atoms. The findings suggest that there is evidence of functionalisation as determined by XRD and elemental analyses. However, further investigation is necessary to confirm this hypothesis. The findings in this work suggest that the first mechanism of sorption was more likely to be related to the degree of expansion of the expanded graphite. Various metals are present in used oil, and their removal can be challenging. Some metals in oil are not considered heavy since they have a relatively low density but can be associated with heavy metals in terms of toxicity.

Nicotiana alkaloids-intervened phospholipid ozonolysis at the air-water interface

Cigarette nicotiana alkaloids associated with lung and cardiovascular diseases attack enormous attention. However, the mechanism at the molecular level between nicotiana alkaloids and phospholipid ozonolysis remains elusive. Herein, we investigated the interfacial ozonolysis of a hung droplet containing 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-phosphatidylglycerol (POPG) intervened by nicotiana alkaloids (4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone, NNK; rac-N′-nitrosonornicotine, NNN; nicotine; and (R,S)-N-nitrosoanasabine, NAT) and followed by on-line mass spectrometry analysis. NNK and NNN showed an acceleration on the interfacial ozonolysis, while nicotine and NAT inhibited this chemistry. Such acceleration/inhibition on POPG ozonolysis was positively correlated with nicotiana alkaloid concentrations. The reaction rate constants suggested that the ozonolysis of lung phospholipids exposed to cigarette smoke at the air-water interface occurred rapidly. A possible mechanism of the hydrophilic/oleophilic nature of nicotiana alkaloids mediating the packing density of POPG was proposed. NNK and NNN with a hydrophilic nature inserted into the POPG monolayer loosed the packing, but nicotine and NAT with an oleophilic nature let the POPG closely pack and shield the CC double bonds exposed to ozone (O3). These results gain the knowledge of nicotiana alkaloids mediated phospholipid ozonolysis at the molecule level and provide a method for online interfacial reaction studies associated with elevated indoor pollutants on public health.

Oil Removal from Polluted Seawater using Carbon Avocado Peel as Bio-Absorbent

Oil spills are a very dangerous occurrence for the marine ecosystem as the marine life-form's existence gets unnecessarily threatened. Since the exploration of oil from marine resources has become a must and oil spills end up occurring accidentally, as a result, it becomes important to employ various oil spill cleanup methods. The purpose of the current work was to evaluate the oil sorption capacity of dried carbonized avocado peel (AP) waste. AP was dried under the sun and microwaved to have the activated carbon AP. In this study, batch adsorption studies were conducted to remove different oil types (Crude oil, Diesel, Kerosene, and Gas oil) from polluted seawater using AP. The effect of various important parameters, namely, mixing time, adsorbent dose, oil dose, oil types, and reusability on the oil uptake, and their optimum conditions for maximum sorption efficiency was studied. Batch studies indicated that an adsorbent dosage of 7 g, mixing time of 20 minutes under a mixing rate of 45–50 revolutions/min, 1 g of oil and provides maximum oil removal efficiency in the present study. Based on the data fit result of the adsorption; the 7 g AP at 20 min (90%) had better oil retention than the 1.5 g (66%), 3 g (77%), and 5 g (82%) AP. The results indicated that the maximum oil adsorption percentage upon increasing the adsorbent dose (1.5 g, 3 g, 5 g, and 7 g peel) was 66-90% for Crude oil, 45-68% for Diesel, 35-56% for Kerosene, and 19-45% for Gas oil at 20 min using 1 gram oil. The results revealed that sorption capacity decreased as the oil got lighter. Increasing the oil dose reduce the adsorption capacity (Crude oil 90-66%, Diesel 64-45%, Kerosene 50-39%, and Gas oil 40-12%). The oil sorption capacities of the AP sorbents reduce gradually from 90-64% after 10 cycles, with about 72%, since the oleophilic nature of the peel surface was affected during the regeneration process. The kinetic data was analyzed for all adsorbent doses. The pseudo-first order kinetic model was found to agree well with then experimental data found. The result showed that AP biosorbent followed pseudo-first order kinetics. According to the results presented, the cheap efficient AP oil spill sorbent could be developed as a potential material to be used in seawater treatment for oil removal. The avocado carbon displayed excellent adsorption properties for the simulated seawater effluents containing oil.

From trash to treasure: A sustainable approach to oil spill clean-up

Oil spill clean-up is a colossal and pressing problem in our world today. About 1.5 million gallons of oil are spilled each year and millions of dollars are spent to clean-up the spilled oil. These spills also harm marine animals and pollute drinking water. Due to these detrimental environmental effects, cleaning up oil spill is imperative. Finding an effective method to combat these oil spills will greatly reduce the amount of damage and the cost of oil spill clean-up. We examined the ability of two plant-based biodegradable sorbents, water spangle leaves (Salvinia minima) and milkweed fibers (Asclepias syriaca) to retain oil in fresh and salt water conditions. We hypothesized that milkweed fibers would be more effective than water spangle leaves for oil spill clean-up due to its hydrophobic, oleophilic nature and its tubular structure. In addition, we assessed milkweed fibers for their recovery and reusability by recovering the absorbed oil using a vacuum filter unit. Our results indicate that milkweed fibers are a more effective sorbent than water spangle leaves and could be reused multiple times. Interestingly, we also found that milkweed fibers were able to absorb oil up to 40 times of its weight. The results from this study will help find an eco-friendly and cost-effective solution for oil spill clean-up using natural, biodegradable sorbents.

Reusable Macroporous Oil Sorbent Films from Plastic Wastes.

Plastic waste comprises 15% of the total municipal solid waste and can be a rich source for producing value-added materials. Among them, polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) account for 60% of the total plastic waste, mainly due to their low-end and one-time-use applications. Herein, we report reusable oil sorbent films made by upcycling waste PE and PP. The as-prepared oil sorbent had an uptake capacity of 55 g/g. SEM analysis revealed a macroporous structure with a pore size range of 1-10 µm, which facilitates oil sorption. Similarly, the contact angle values reflected the oleophilic nature of the sorbent. Moreover, thermal properties and crystallinity were examined using DSC, while mechanical properties were calculated using tensile testing. Lastly, 95% of the sorbed oil could be easily recovered by squeezing mechanically or manually.

Effect of Pore Size and Hydrophobic Coating on Oil-Water Separation System for Grease Trap

Public concern towards solidification of fat, oil, and grease (FOG) through disposed wastes into the drainage system is an unresolved issue to this day. The use of skimmer to separate oil and water form their mixture is a less comprehensive solution. This paper aimed to design the concept and fabricate oil-water separation medium, as well as to analyse the effect of different pore sizes of wire mesh and coating respectively. Water separation system is designed based on Pugh Method, while stainless steel wire mesh is used in analysing the water repellent and oil absorption characteristics. Titanium dioxide is used as coating. Surface characterization and contact angle of droplet were observed using scanning electron microscope and contact angle measurement tools. Hydrophobicity of uncoated stainless steel of wire mesh will increase if the pore size of wire mesh is decreasing in size. The more layers of coating increase the hydrophobicity of the wire mesh in increments with contact angle more than 100⁰. For the cooking oil droplet to expeditiously spread over the mesh surface and rapidly permeate through the mesh less than 1 second, showed the oleophilic nature of the mesh.

Highly branched polyethylene used as sorbents for oil‐spill cleanup and separation

AbstractHighly branched polyethylene (HBPE) was developed into practical application as highly efficient sorbent material for oil‐spill cleanup and oil/water separation. To obtain large‐scale production of HBPE, a thermal stable Ni(II)‐α‐diimine catalyst for ethylene polymerization in our previous work has been employed to prepare the polyolefin material in a 10‐liter polymerization reactor with a high activity (>106 gPE/mol[Ni] h). The structure, molecular weight and distribution, thermal and mechanical properties were systematically characterized by NMR, ATR‐FTIR, GPC, DSC, DMA, and TGA, respectively. Through simple but feasible cross‐linking process, the HBPE‐based oil‐absorption materials with contact angles up to 111.5° were directly applied into absorption test using various oil and pure hydrocarbons. Reusability and recovery of the absorption materials and oil or solvents were probed by drying or using the distillation method. Oil/water separation was made to determine the hydrophobic and oleophilic nature of this material. Flory‐Rehner polymer swelling theory is employed to study the structure–property relationship via determining the network structure including cross‐linking density ρc and average molecular weight Mc between two cross‐links. The mixture of sorbent material after absorbing oil was regarded as crude oil component to simulate oil refinery process by thermogravimetric analysis, providing an alternative approach for oil‐collection.

Sustainable, hydrophobic, and reusable paper waste aerogel as an effective and versatile oil absorbent

The direct use of environmental paper waste (PW) to create spongy aerogel intended for oil absorption is an interesting green chemistry technique. The oil sorption response, on the other hand, is constrained by a poor oil sorption capacity and lack of stability. To address these concerns for the time being, silica aerogel is being used. Our goal is to use PW aerogel to replace silica aerogels. We made an environmental PW-based aerogel by dispersing PW, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), and glutaraldehyde (GA). In terms of oil sorption the hybrid PW aerogel performs wonderfully. Notably, it displayed a significant absorption capacity towards various oils of approximately 49–110 times its own mass, dependent on the thickness and density of the oil and solvents within 15–35 s, 25 °C, and 2 × 2 cm dimensions. Additionally, owing to the high sponginess (99.95%), and less density (0.0114 g/cm3), tight bonding between PW and PVA occurs. As a results, the spongy aerogel has an oleophilic nature, superior mechanical power, and high thermal strength. The consistent fibrillar pore linkage gives a high surface to volume ratio, low surface energy, as well as high surface roughness, the aerogel undergoes minimal structural change after numerous recycles. All of these elements have a role in excessive oil absorption.

Nano-fluoro dispersion functionalized superhydrophobic degummed & waste silk fabric for sustained recovery of petroleum oils & organic solvents from wastewater

Superwettable and chemically stable waste silk fabric and degummed silk were used in this study for treatment of oily wastewater and oil/solvent recovery. Silk functionalized with a nano-fluoro dispersion showed a superhydrophobic and oleophilic nature. The functionalized silk demonstrated superoleophilicity towards petroleum oils and organic solvents, and exhibited filtration efficiencies of more than 95%, and up to 70% till 25 re-usable cycles. Furthermore, the functionalized silk materials demonstrated high permeation flux of 584 L.m-2.h-1 (for Diesel) for continuous oil-water separation operation. The pH based study in highly acidic and alkaline mediums (pH from 1 to 13) showed excellent stability of nano-fluoro coated silk. Thermogravimetric analysis showed thermal stability up to 250 °C, and 400 °C, for functionalized waste silk, and degummed silk, respectively. FE-SEM analysis revealed randomly oriented spindle shaped nano particles anchored on the silk surface exhibiting hierarchical patterns, as required for the superhydrophobic Cassie-Baxter state. The rate absorption study showed close curve fitting for pseudo second order kinetics (R2 = 0.999), which indicated physical absorption process. BET analysis confirmed the porous nature, while the elemental XPS and EDX analysis confirmed strong bonding and uniform coating of fluoro nanoparticles on silk surface. The results demonstrated that nano-fluoro dispersion functionalized silk can be successfully employed for effective oil/solvent-water filtration, oil/solvent-spill cleanups, and treatment of oily wastewater for protection of water resources.

Deposition of Super-Hydrophobic Silver Film on Copper Substrate and Evaluation of Its Corrosion Properties

A simple and versatile chemical solution deposition process is reported to manipulate the wettability properties of copper sheets. The whole process has the advantage of being time-saving low cost and environment-friendly. An adherent silver coating was achieved under optimal conditions. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction were used to examine the silver film structure. A confocal microscope was used to record the 3D topography and assess the film roughness of the surface. A dual morphology was revealed, consisting of broad regions with feather-like structured morphologies and some areas with spherical morphologies. Such silver-coated copper samples exhibited a sufficiently stable coating with superhydrophobicity, having a maximum water contact angle of 152°, along with an oleophilic nature. The corrosion behavior of the produced hydrophobic copper under optimal conditions was evaluated by means of potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) using a 3.5% NaCl solution. The corrosion protection mechanism was elucidated by the proposed equivalent circuits, indicating that the superhydrophobic silver coating acted as an effective barrier, separating the Cu substrate from the corrosive solution. The superhydrophobic coating demonstrated enhanced anti-corrosion properties against NaCl aqueous solution in relation to the copper substrate as indicated from both EIS and potentiodynamic polarization experiments.

Durable CNTs Reinforced Porous Electrospun Superhydrophobic Membrane for Efficient Gravity Driven Oil/Water Separation

Developing a durable and efficient oil/water separation membrane for purification of the oily water is crucial for sustainable aquatic ecosystems and public health. Herein, a superhydrophobic and superoleophilic nanofibrous membrane was successfully developed with an improved mechanical strength via a facile method of blend-electrospun. By introducing an ultralow amounts of carbon nanotubes (CNTs, 0.15 wt%, 2.55 mg/g), the obtained composite membrane exhibited a satisfactory hydrophobic (water contact angle, WCA = 152°) and oleophilic nature (oil contact angle, OCA ∼ 0°, oil permeation time =91.63 ms). The as-prepared composite membrane exhibited a strong acid/alkali resistance (pH = 1–14), high thermal stability (160 °C), and good mechanical stability; it had a high oil-water separation flux (max = 9270 L m-2 h-1) and a separation efficiency of > 99% under the driving of gravity, indicating a significant applicability for energy-saving filtration. The integration of high performance, low cost, and a simple solution-based fabrication process makes the as-prepared membranes have a great potential for future applications.

Oil spill sorption capacity of raw and thermally modified orange peel waste

Oil spill cases in the river Nile have been reported in the recent decade. Orange peel is a major waste of the food processing industry in Egypt, one of the six largest orange peel producers of the world. The purpose of the current work was to evaluate the oil sorption capacity of dried raw orange peel waste (OP) and thermally modified (300 °C and 500 °C) orange peel waste (TMOP). The effect of oil type, sorption time, particle size and reusability on the oil uptake of raw dried orange peel was assessed. Results have indicated that the oil sorption capacity of OP ranged between 3 and 5 g/g at 25 °C, while its water uptake was found to be below 1 g/g, making the selectivity of OP to oil relatively higher than other bio-sorbents. Orange peel could not be used for more than 5 oil sorption cycles, since the oleophilic nature of the peel surface was lost during the regeneration process. Compared to OP, limited percent increase in oil sorption capacity (18–40%) was observed after the thermal modification of orange peel. However, the water uptake of the TMOP is significantly higher than OP. Based on the liquid retention model data fit; the TMOP had better oil retention characteristics than the dried orange peel. According to the results presented, dried orange peel waste is a potentially cheap efficient oleophilic oil spill sorbent that losses its inherent oil selectivity after carbonization.

Nanoporous electrospun cellulose acetate butyrate nanofibres for oil sorption

Porous superhydrophobic nanofibrous networks based on cellulose acetate butyrate (CAB) were prepared using electrospinning. The morphology and wettability of the prepared fibrous networks was studied using scanning electron microscopy and static contact angle measurements. The porous nanofiber networks exhibited superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity with a water contact angle of ∼165° and an oil contact angle of ∼0°. The porous nature of the nanofibres themselves is thought to lead to an increased surface area making them suitable for sorption applications. Due to their hydrophobic and oleophilic nature, they were tested for their oil sorption capacity. They demonstrated an oil sorption capacity of ∼60 g/g for motor oil, which is four times that of commercially used polypropylene. The nanofibrous mats also demonstrated excellent reusability, retaining ∼80% of their sorption capacity for up to 5 cycles of use.

ZnO decorated anti-bacterial electrospun ABS nanocomposite membrane for oil-water separation

Abstract Here we report the fabrication and performance of a superoleophilic and anti-bacterial nonwoven nanofibrous poly(acrylonitrile-co-butadiene-co-styrene) [ABS]/ZnO electrospun nanocomposite membrane. The electrospun ABS membrane was decorated with floral ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) by a post-treatment method. The pristine ABS and nanocomposite membranes showed super oleophilic nature and could selectively separate different oils from the oil–water mixture by a gravity-driven technique. The ZnO NPs in the nanofiber could enhance the oil flux and also imparted anti-bacterial activity to electrospun ABS membrane against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The current nanofibrous system can be a good candidate for multi-functional oil-water separation.

Selective adsorption of oil on self-organized surface patterns formed over soft thin PDMS films

A new, simple, cost effective and facile method of adsorption of oil from oil - water mixture on self-organized patterns formed over a soft thin elastic film has been developed, which is of great ecological importance. Surface corrugations (such as columns, labyrinths and cavities evolved spontaneously due to instability on the surfaces of a thin soft elastic PDMS film in adhesive contact with a contactor) along with the oleophilic nature of the film help in selective adsorption of the oil from the oil-water mixture into the intervening surface spaces. The increase in RMS surface roughness brought about either by increase in adsorbent weight or by formation of a columnar structure (instead of cavities or labyrinths) was found to have a significant incremental effect on the true surface area creation by formation of increased number of oil adsorption sites: leading to higher oil penetration and thus, higher oil adsorption. For 0.3 wt% of adsorbent, adsorption was found to be maximum for columnar structures at 23%, followed by cavities at 15% and minimum with labyrinth at around 12%. The ratio (dp/dd) of the substrate pore size dimension (dp) to the surface oil droplet dimension (dd) in crude oil, motor oil, diesel and petrol were found to be progressively lower and hence the maximum adsorption and penetration in the columnar patterns was recognized in case of crude oil. The different oil morphology on adsorption can be greatly used as a marker to identify different category of oil. The surface columns fabricated by self-organization was found to adsorb double the weight of the adsorbent, and moreover the quantity of the polymeric material required in the present case was much less than that for bulk adsorbents, and also does not involve any additional functionalization or use of any external template material, making this method a very suitable one for selective oil adsorption.

Destabilization of fine solids suspended in oil media through wettability modification and water-assisted agglomeration

Removing fine solids suspended in aqueous or oil media is crucial in many chemical, petroleum and environmental engineering processes with ever-increasing demands on improving product quality and meeting waste management standard. In oil industry, the removal of fine mineral solids is required to achieve high-quality oil products but remains a great challenge. This difficulty is due to hydrophobic and oleophilic nature of the mineral matters and small dimension of fine particulates. Here we introduce a two-step agglomeration method to destabilize bitumen-coated silica particles in cyclohexane by simply modifying their surface wettability using the amphiphilic polymer poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(propylene glycol)-block-poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-PPG-PEG), and then adding a small amount of water to trigger the formation of large particle aggregates. By sedimentation tests, we demonstrate that the two-step method can significantly enhance settling rate of the particles and reduce content of residual solids in the supernatant simultaneously. The underlying physical interaction mechanisms have been investigated using atomic force microscope (AFM) and quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D). The results suggest that PEG-PPG-PEG can readily adsorb to the bitumen-coated silica surface, thereby altering the surface from hydrophobic to hydrophilic and tuning its interaction with added water drops from repulsion to attraction in cyclohexane. This work provides useful insights into the development of effective strategies of removing suspended fine solids from oil media in petroleum production processes.

Fabrication of grease resistant paper with non-fluorinated chemicals for food packaging

The oleophilic nature of paper often limits its use in applications that involve direct contact with grease, but now the generation of oil-repellent surfaces has almost universally deployed environmentally detrimental approaches relying on fluorinated compounds. In this paper, non-toxic fluoro-free grease-proof papers coated with sodium alginate (SA)/sodium carboxymethyl cellulose and SA/propylene glycol alginate were prepared, the maximum of kit values reached 9. The coatings completely covered the base paper surface and penetrated into the interfiber networks to some extent, and the modified mechanical properties were obtained. It was found that the lower the air permeability was, the better the oil resistance of the biopolymer coatings on fiber substrate was. For coatings with high surface energy, as the surface energy is dominated by the polar part, the stronger the polarity, the greater the repulsion to oil. The reduction of surface energy can effectively improve the anti-wettability for oil and water.

Functionalized three-dimensional graphene sponges for highly efficient crude and diesel oil adsorption.

Modified Hummer's method has been used in this study to synthesize graphene oxide (GO) solution that was utilized for the fabrication of three-dimensional (3D) graphene sponges and their subsequent functionalization through a low-cost and facile vapor-based surface enhancement approach. The functionalized 3D-graphene sponge is an excellent absorbent, which can remove more than 3300wt.% of crude oil (calculated with respect to the original sorbent mass). The functionalization of the obtained graphene sponges with trichloro (1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyl)silane enhanced their wettability properties due to the super-hydrophobic nature of the resulting materials characterized by the contact angles in water greater than 150°. Furthermore, their elastic compression modulus (estimated by conducting a series of compression tests) was about 22.3kPa. The equilibrium modeling of the oil removal process, which was performed by plotting Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherms, confirmed the properties of the fabricated 3D graphene sponges as exceptional absorbents for crude and diesel oil, which could be attributed to the oleophilic nature of graphene. Moreover, the obtained 3D graphene sponges could be regenerated via heat treatment, which was conducted to release the adsorbed species. After five adsorption-desorption cycles, the sorption capacity of the produced 3D graphene sponges towards crude oil reached 95% of the initial value.

Synthesis and Morphology Study of SEBS Triblock Copolymers Functionalized with Sulfonate and Phosphonate Groups for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Aromatic rings of poly(styrene-b-(ethylene-r-butylene)-b-styrene) triblock copolymer (SEBS) were functionalized with various acid functional groups for proton exchange membrane (PEM) applications. Three different acid functional groups (fluoroalkylsulfonic acid, arylsulfonic acid, and arylphosphonic acid) were introduced into SEBS via borylation of aromatic C–H bonds and Suzuki coupling reactions. The incorporation of acid side groups selectively into the polystyrene block of SEBS created nanometer-scale phase separated morphology composed of hydrophilic and hydrophobic domains in which the morphology structures and interdomanin distances are dependent on the chemical structure of acid side chains. Despite high ion exchange capacity value, the aryl phosphonated polymer (SEBS-P) showed the lowest water uptake and significantly lower proton conductivity compared to sulfonated SEBS PEMs because of the low acidity of phosphonic acid. Compared to aryl sulfonated SEBS-S2, fluoroalkyl sulfonated SEBS-S1 showed better proton conductivity at low relative humidity condition (<50%), which is ascribed to the stronger acidity and more compact ionic domains. Morphology study of SEBS-S1 indicates that due to both hydrophobic and oleophilic nature of fluoroalkyl chains, fluoroalkyl sulfonate chains of SEBS-S1 induced more dense ionic self-aggregation.