INTRODUCTION:

Polymer–salt complexes have long been considered strong candidates for solid electrolytes in electrochemical systems such as batteries, supercapacitors, and electrochromic devices. Even after decades of intensive research, polymer electrolytes continue to face several limitations, including low ionic conductivity at room temperature, poor cation transference numbers, and the formation of resistive interfacial layers at the electrode–electrolyte boundary. Numerous modification strategies have been attempted to address these issues; however, improvements are often system-specific and remain only partially successful¹. In recent years, polymer gel electrolytes have attracted growing interest because they combine the advantages of polymers and liquid electrolytes. Their ionic conductivity is typically close to that of liquid systems, offering better performance than solid-state counterparts². Nevertheless, gel electrolytes also present drawbacks such as poor thermal stability, reduced mechanical strength, and higher reactivity toward metal electrodes, which limit their long-term applicability³. A widely adopted approach to overcome these shortcomings is the incorporation of nanoscale fillers, either organic or inorganic, which can reduce crystallinity, increase amorphous regions, and thereby enhance ionic transport, thermal resistance, and interfacial stability^4-6. Poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is one of the most extensively studied host polymers owing to its low cost, biodegradability, and ease of processing. Its structure, enriched with regularly distributed hydroxyl groups, enables strong inter- and intramolecular hydrogen bonding, which directly influences its crystalline behavior and mechanical strength. PVA also exhibits a wide band gap (5.1 eV), a refractive index of 1.48, and a dielectric constant of 2.44, which support its use across industrial, medical, and packaging applications⁷. Ammonium thiocyanate (NH₄SCN) is frequently used as a dopant in polymer electrolytes because its small cation and relatively larger anion facilitate salt dissociation and ion transport. Herrington’s⁸ studies reported that ammonium salts display ionic conductivities several orders of magnitude higher than conventional alkali salts. In the present work, TiO₂ nanoparticles were incorporated into the PVA–NH₄SCN matrix. Due to their high dielectric constant and large surface area, TiO₂ particles enhance salt dissociation, suppress the crystallinity of PVA, and create amorphous domains conducive to ion migration. These combined effects are expected to improve conductivity, thermal stability, and electrode–electrolyte compatibility. Therefore, this study focuses on the development and characterization of TiO₂-modified PVA–NH₄SCN nanocomposite gel polymer electrolytes as potential candidates for high-performance electrochemical applications.

EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES:

Materials:

Poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) with an average molecular weight of 85,000–124,000 (Aldrich, USA) was employed as the host polymer. Ammonium thiocyanate (NH₄SCN, AR grade, s.d. Fine Chem, India) was used as the salt, while dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO, Merck, Mumbai) served as the solvent. Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles (Alfa Aesar, CAS No. 13463-67-7) with particle sizes in the range of 10–30 nm were selected as the inorganic filler.

Polymer film Preparation:

The nanocomposite electrolyte membranes were fabricated using a conventional solution casting technique. PVA was dissolved in DMSO under continuous stirring to obtain a clear and viscous solution. NH₄SCN was then added at fixed stoichiometric ratios, and the mixture was stirred for ~6 hours until a homogeneous polymer–salt solution was formed. For the composite systems, predetermined weight percentages of TiO₂ (1, 3, and 5 wt% relative to PVA) were dispersed into the base electrolyte solution by vigorous stirring combined with intermittent ultrasonication to achieve uniform distribution of the filler. The final mixtures were cast into clean glass Petri dishes and allowed to dry slowly at room temperature, followed by vacuum oven treatment to remove residual solvent. The resulting free-standing, flexible films were carefully peeled off and stored in a desiccator prior to characterization.

Structural Characterization:

The X-ray diffraction patterns of nanocomposite gel polymer electrolyte films were recorded using a D₂ Phaser diffractometer (Model: 08 Discover, Bruker, Germany) with CuK radiation (λ = 1.54 Å) at room temperature. The diffraction patterns were collected over the Bragg angle (2θ) range of 5ᵒ-80ᵒ.

Thermal Characterization:

The thermal stability of the nanocomposite gel polymer electrolyte films was investigated using a DSC-60 differential scanning calorimeter (Shimadzu, Japan). The measurements were carried out under a nitrogen atmosphere with a heating rate of 5ᵒC/min in the temperature range of 303-623 K.

Electrical characterization:

Electrical characterization of the nanocomposite gel polymer electrolyte membranes was performed using a CH electrochemical workstation (CH Instruments, Model: CHI608F) at room temperature. Impedance spectra (1 Hz-3 MHz) were analyzed to obtain the bulk resistance, and the ionic conductivity was calculated from the complex impedance plots.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION:

X-Ray Studies

The XRD patterns of the nanocomposite system, made from PVA-NH₄SCN without and with TiO₂nanofillers, along with the pristine materials, are shown in Fig. 1 (a-e). The broad hump around 2 = 19.63 and 22.90 in Fig. 1(a) indicates the semi-crystalline nature of PVA^9,10. The primary cause of PVA’s semicrystalline structure was the strong intramolecular and intermolecular hydrogen bonds that existed between its molecules¹¹. The decrease in the characteristic peak intensity of PVA upon adding salt content in pattern (b) suggests alterations in the semicrystalline structure of the PVA matrix, resulting from interactions between the hydroxyl groups of PVA and the cations of the added salt^12,13. The broadening of the peak indicates an increase in the amorphous nature of the complex system. According to the criterion proposed by Hodge et al.¹⁴, there is a correlation between peak height and the degree of crystallinity, which supports this interpretation. The incorporation of TiO₂ nanoparticles initially promotes crystallite formation in the polymer matrix. At 1 wt% TiO₂, weak diffraction peaks begin to emerge. Interestingly, the reduced peak intensity at 3 wt% TiO₂ (pattern (d)) indicates increased amorphousness, likely due to enhanced intercalation or uniform dispersion of TiO₂ particles within the polymer matrix. This behavior may result from strong physical interactions among the polymer, salt, and TiO₂ filler. At 5 wt% TiO₂ pattern (e), the diffraction peaks become more pronounced again, suggesting partial reorganization of crystalline regions. These observations demonstrate that TiO₂ concentration significantly influences the microstructural order of the polymer electrolyte system.

Figure 1. XRD pattern of: (a) PVA: DMSO (b) PVA-NH₄SCN (c) PVA-NH₄SCN: 1 wt% TiO₂(d) PVA-NH₄SCN: 3wt% TiO₂ (e) PVA-NH₄SCN: 5 wt% TiO_2.

DSC Analysis:

Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) was employed to investigate the thermal transitions of the PVA-based polymer electrolytes containing NH₄SCN salt and TiO₂ filler. The DSC thermograms for PVA-DMSO, PVA: NH₄SCN: DMSO, and PVA: NH₄SCN: TiO₂ with different concentrations of TiO₂ are shown in Figures (2) and (3). The DMSO-casted PVA system exhibited two distinct endothermic peaks at 88.51℃ and 118.17℃, corresponding to the glass transition temperature (T_g) and the melting of semi-crystalline domains of PVA, respectively. The presence of DMSO, a polar aprotic solvent, disrupts interchain hydrogen bonding in PVA, resulting in reduced crystallinity and enhanced chain flexibility, which is reflected in a relatively low T_g¹⁵. From Figure 2 (a), the PVA-DMSO sample displayed a broad endothermic peak at approximately 180 ℃, attributed to polymer chain relaxation or the onset of thermal degradation. Upon the addition of NH₄SCN, the T_g decreased to 79℃, and the melting transition was observed at 113℃, indicating enhanced plasticization and a more amorphous structure due to ionic interactions between the NH₄⁺/SCN^- ions and PVA chains. At 157.02℃, a small distinct endothermic transition appeared, which can be related to the melting of NH₄SCN-rich crystalline regions or salt-polymer complexes embedded within the semi-crystalline PVA matrix, as shown in Figure 2(b). The incorporation of TiO₂ nanofillers significantly modifies this melting behavior with 1 wt% TiO₂, the melting peak was observed at 151.88℃, slightly lower than in the salt-only system, indicating moderate disruption of salt crystallinity. At 3 wt% TiO₂, the peak further shifted to 148.11℃, suggesting maximum disruption of ordered domains and increased chain mobility. This condition favours ionic migration and corresponds to the highest ionic conductivity among all compositions, as seen from Figure 3. However, at 5 wt%, the melting peak shifted to a higher temperature of 164.71℃, implying recrystallized structures, likely due to filler agglomeration. At 3 wt% concentration, there is a good balance between the amorphous phase and the interaction between polymer salt and filler, allowing better ion movement. Additionally, low-temperature transitions (56.04℃ and 65.07℃ for 1 and 5 wt%, respectively) were also observed, which may correspond to moisture loss or the onset of polymer segmental motion. At higher temperatures, all TiO₂-filled samples exhibited broad endothermic peaks around 315-322℃, which may be attributed to the thermal degradation of the polymer backbone. The increasing degradation temperature with higher TiO₂ content further confirms the enhanced thermal stability imparted by the filler. The thermal degradation temperature (T_d) shifted to a higher range, suggesting enhanced intermolecular interactions between the PVA matrix and the incorporated hybrid nanoparticles¹⁶. These interactions were further supported by evidence from XRD analyses. Moreover, the observed improvement in thermal stability can be attributed to the uniform dispersion of TiO₂ nanoparticles and the increased amorphous content within the PVA matrix. This suggests that the enhanced thermal resistance arises from cross-linking interactions between the polymer chains and the embedded nanoparticles, which demand higher thermal energy to initiate degradation. Consequently, the DSC results confirm that the incorporation of TiO₂ nanoparticles leads to an overall enhancement in the thermal stability of the PVA-based polymer system^17,18.

Figure 2. DSC thermogram of (a) PVA-DMSO (b) PVA-NH₄SCN-DMSO

Figure 3. DSC thermogram of (a) PVA-NH₄SCN: 1 wt% TiO₂(b) PVA-NH₄SCN: 3 wt% TiO₂(c) PVA-NH₄SCN: 5 wt% TiO₂

Impedance Analysis (EIS):

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was employed to evaluate ionic conductivity (Fig. 4). The Nyquist plots generally show a semicircle at high frequencies, associated with bulk resistance (R_b), followed by a low-frequency spike that corresponds to electrode–electrolyte polarization. From Figure 4, each plot exhibits a semicircular arc in the high-frequency region, followed by a straight inclined line at lower frequencies, characteristic of ion-conducting polymer electrolytes. The semicircle in the high-frequency region corresponds to the bulk resistance (R_b) of the electrolyte, while the low-frequency tail is attributed to the capacitive behavior associated with electrode-electrolyte interfaces, modelled as a constant phase element (CPE)¹⁹. The R_b values were estimated from the high-frequency intercepts of the semicircle with the real axis (Z_r). As can be observed in Figure 4, all impedance spectra display either a faint or completely diminished semicircular arc, confirming that the electrical response of these gel electrolytes is governed mainly by ionic conduction^20,21. The absence of a distinct semicircle in the high-frequency region suggests that grain-boundary contributions are negligible, while the inclined spike appearing at lower frequencies originates from ion accumulation at the electrode–electrolyte interface, a characteristic feature of electrode polarization phenomena.

(1)

In this relation, σ represents the ionic conductivity of the film, l denotes its thickness, R_b is the bulk resistance obtained from the impedance spectrum, and A refers to the surface area of the stainless-steel electrodes in contact with the sample. As evident from the Nyquist plots, for the pristine electrolyte (PVA–NH₄SCN–DMSO) (Figure 4a), the Nyquist plot exhibits a moderate intercept along the real axis, representing a relatively large bulk resistance (R_b). The higher resistance implies restricted ion transport, which can be attributed to the semi-crystalline nature of the PVA matrix and the limited flexibility of its polymer chains, both of which hinder segmental motion and ionic mobility. When 1 wt% of TiO₂ nanofiller is introduced (Figure 4b), a noticeable reduction in R_b is evident, signifying improved ionic movement through the polymer network. The addition of TiO₂ not only enhances the amorphous phase but also generates Lewis acid–base interaction sites that facilitate salt dissociation, thereby increasing the number of mobile charge carriers available for conduction.

Figure 4. Complex impedance plots for (a) PVA-NH₄SCN (b) PVA-NH₄SCN: 1 wt% TiO₂(c) PVA-NH₄SCN: 3 wt% TiO₂ (d) PVA-NH₄SCN: 5 wt% TiO₂

A further improvement is achieved with the 3 wt% TiO₂-doped sample (Figure 4c), which demonstrates the lowest bulk resistance among all studied compositions. This composition exhibits optimal ion transport due to the homogeneous dispersion of TiO₂ nanoparticles within the polymer–salt matrix. The uniformly distributed nanofillers act as active centers for ion–dipole interactions and contribute to greater polymer chain flexibility, thereby providing smoother and more continuous ion migration pathways. Consequently, the ionic conductivity increases by nearly one order of magnitude, from the 10⁻⁴ S/cm range for the unfilled system to the 10⁻³ S/cm range for the optimally filled (3 wt% TiO₂) electrolyte, achieving a maximum conductivity of 4.52 × 10⁻³ S/cm at ambient temperature. Beyond this optimum concentration, i.e., for the 5 wt% TiO₂-loaded system (Figure 4d), the impedance plot becomes more irregular, accompanied by a significant increase in R_b. The reduction in conductivity at higher filler loadings is ascribed to nanoparticle agglomeration, which disrupts the uniform conduction channels and restricts the polymer’s segmental dynamics.

In summary, as seen in Figure 4, the incorporation of a moderate amount of TiO₂ markedly enhances ionic transport by promoting amorphous character and strengthening polymer–filler coordination. However, excessive filler addition leads to aggregation, which impedes charge movement by blocking continuous conducting paths. This observed trend is in close agreement with earlier reports on nanofiller-based polymer electrolyte systems²².

Transfer Number Measurement (TNM) Study

Figure 5 illustrates how TNM measurement and analysis determine the contribution of ions and electrons to total conductivity. Following the application of 0.5 V, the current starts to drop until it reaches saturation. Figure 5 displays the current polarization as a function of time for the NCPEs containing 0 wt% TiO₂ and the most conductive composition with 3 wt% TiO₂. The high initial current can be attributed to the simultaneous participation of both electrons and ions during the initial phase. Upon reaching steady-state, the cell becomes polarized, and electrons primarily carry the remaining current. This occurs because stainless steel (SS) electrodes obstruct ion movement while allowing electron flow^23-25. Consequently, SS electrodes are suitable for determining the electronic transference number (t_el). Both the ionic transference number (t_ion) and electronic transference number (t_el) were calculated using Equations (2) and (3)

(2)

(3)

Where I_iand I_ss stand for initial and steady-state current, respectively. For the sample without TiO₂ (0 wt%), the ionic transference number was found to be 0.82, while the corresponding electronic transference number was 0.18. Upon addition of 3 wt% TiO₂, the ionic transference number increased significantly to 0.966, with the electronic contribution reduced to only 0.034. The fact that the value of t_ion is so near to the ideal value makes it extremely interesting. It is thus acknowledged that ions play a crucial part in the NCGPE system’s transport process. According to research by Navin et al.²⁶, the t_ion for Al₂O₃-filled polyvinyl alcohol composite gel electrolyte NCPE ranges from 0.94 to 0.98.

Figure 5. Polarization current versus time (I-t) response of PVA-NH₄SCN gel polymer electrolytes with 0 wt% (Black line) and 3 wt% (Red line) TiO₂ nanoparticles.

Linear Sweep Voltammetry (LSV)

Figure 6. Linear sweep voltammetry for PVA-NH₄SCN: 3wt% TiO₂ film at scan rate of 10 mV/s at ambient temperature.

The optimum operational potential of the NCGPE system incorporating TiO₂ was evaluated using linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) (Figure 6). Introducing TiO₂ into the PVA-NH₄SCN electrolyte extended the electrochemical stability window to 4.23V at 3 wt% loading. The cathodic and anodic limits were recorded at -2.20 V and +2.03 V, respectively. These findings indicate that the presence of TiO₂ significantly improves the electrochemical stability of the nanocomposite polymer gel electrolyte system.

CONCLUSION:

This work highlights the effectiveness of TiO₂ as a functional filler in modifying PVA-NH₄SCN gel polymer electrolytes. Structural analysis established a clear correlation between reduced crystallinity and enhanced ionic transport, while thermal studies verified the improved stability of the nanocomposite films. Electrochemical characterization showed that the optimized electrolyte maintained a wide potential window of 4.23V and predominantly ionic conduction, as indicated by transference numbers of 0.966 (ions) and 0.034 (electrons). The conductivity enhancement observed at 3 wt% TiO₂ reflects the balance between filler dispersion and polymer-ion interactions; excessive loading, however, caused particle agglomeration and diminished performance. These outcomes demonstrate that careful optimization of nanofiller concentration is essential for maximizing conductivity and stability. The findings confirm that TiO₂-modified PVA-based electrolytes are promising materials for next-generation electrochemical energy storage devices.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:

The authors wish to express their sincere gratitude to the Department of Physics, Pt. Ravishankar Shukla University, Raipur (C.G.), for facilitating the XRD measurements, and to the Central Instrumentation Facility, Jiwaji University, Gwalior (M.P.), for providing the DSC analysis.

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Received on 17.09.2025 Revised on 13.10.2025

Accepted on 04.11.2025 Published on 14.02.2026

Available online from February 18, 2026

Research J. Science and Tech. 2026; 18(1):17-24.

DOI: 10.52711/2349-2988.2026.00003

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