Patent ID: 7301002

Claim:
A sulfonated polyphenylene polymer, derived by controllably sulfonating a polyphenylene polymer with a sulfonating agent, the sulfonated polyphenylene polymer having repeat units of the following structure 1: in which R 1 , R 2 and R 3 are the same or different, wherein each R 1 , R 2 , and R 3 is H or an unsubstituted or inertly-substituted aromatic moiety; Ar 1 and Ar 2 are the same or different, wherein each Ar 1 and Ar 2 is an unsubstituted aromatic moiety or inertly-substituted aromatic moiety; wherein a pendant side chain of a sulfonyl group attaches to a carbon atom; wherein from one to six sulfonyl groups are attached per repeat unit; wherein n≦2; and wherein any combination of R 1 , R 2 and R 3 and Ar 1 and Ar 2 comprises a sub-combination selected from the group consisting of: a) R 1 is different than R 2 , b) R 1 is different than R 3 , c) R 2 is different than R 3 , d) Ar 1 is different than Ar 2 , and e) R 1 ═R 2 ═R 3 ═Ar 1 ═Ar 2 .