Structure of ion exchange resin

The internal structure of the ion exchange resin consists of three parts, which are:
1, polymer skeleton
Composed of cross-linked high polymer;

2. Ion exchange groups
It is attached to the polymer skeleton and has either ionic functional groups with exchangeable ions (called counter-ions) or polar non-ionic functional groups;

3. Holes
It is a pore in the polymer structure (gel pore) and a pore between the polymer structure (capillary pore) that exists in both dry and wet ion exchange resins.

In the cross-linked structure of the polymer matrix (skeleton), many exchange groups are chemically bonded, and these exchange groups are also composed of two parts: fixed part and active part. The fixed part of the exchange group is bound to the substrate of the polymer and cannot move freely, so it is called fixed ion. The active part of the exchange group is the ion with the opposite symbol of the fixed ion, which is called the counter-ion or exchangeable ion. Counter-ions can dissociate into freely moving ions in solution, and exchange with other counter-ions with the same symbol under certain conditions.