Improving Electrical Conductivity, Thermal Stability, and Solubility of Polyaniline-Polypyrrole Nanocomposite by Doping with Anionic Spherical Polyelectrolyte Brushes

Abstract

The extent to which anionic spherical polyelectrolyte brushes (ASPB) as dopant improved the performance of polyaniline-polypyrrole (PANI-PPy) nanocomposite was investigated. Different characterization and analytical methods including Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed that ASPB serving as dopant could improve the comprehensive properties of PANI-PPy nanocomposite. It was different from dopants such as SiO2, poly(sodium-p-styrenesulfonate) (PSS), and canonic spherical polyelectrolyte brushes (CSPB) which only enhanced the performance of PANI-PPy nanocomposite on one or two sides. The electrical conductivity of (PANI-PPy)/ASPB nanocomposite at room temperature was 8.3 S/cm, which was higher than that of PANI-PPy (2.1 S/cm), (PANI-PPy)/PSS (6.8 S/cm), (PANI-PPy)/SiO2 (7.2 S/cm), and (PANI-PPy)/CSPB (2.2 S/cm). Meanwhile, (PANI-PPy)/ASPB nanocomposite possessed enhanced thermal stability and good solubility. In addition, the effects of polymerization temperature, the molecular weight of grafted polyelectrolyte brushes, and storage time on electrical conductivity were discussed.

Ex Situ Fabrication of Polypyrrole-Coated Core-Shell Nanoparticles for High-Performance Coin Cell Supercapacitor

“…Proper control of the shape of the PPy is very important for high performance in a variety of applications, such as supercapacitors, chemical sensors, solar cells (SCs), fuel cells (FCs) and so forth [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]. When PPy is made of nanomaterials, it has following advantages over bulk materials: (1) higher surface area; (2) better reactivity; (3) enhanced electrical conductivity [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 6 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. Studies on the synthesis of nanomaterials with various shapes such as nanorods (NRs), nanoparticles (NPs), and nanotubes (NTs) have been carried out using template-mediated methodologies [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ].…”

“…Among the various nanomaterials, the core-shell is very suitable as a stable electrode material because the Si core can protect the CP shell from swelling and shrinkage problems [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ]. In addition, the high surface area of the Si cores enable rapid adsorption/desorption of electrolyte ions within the electrodes [ 19 ].…”

“…In addition, the high surface area of the Si cores enable rapid adsorption/desorption of electrolyte ions within the electrodes [ 19 ]. On the other hand, the CP shell plays roles in reinforcing the poor electrical properties of Si cores [ 13 , 18 , 19 ]. Thus, the synergistic effect from the PPy shell and the Si core would be advantageous for making a supercapacitor electrode that provides robustness and high electroactivity.…”

“…In conventional synthesis, the SiO 2 templates limit the growth of polymer chains, resulting in undesirable α,α′-linkages inside the PPy chains. In addition, the low electrical properties of SiO 2 -PPy composites are highly related to the low efficiency of core-shell formation in the in situ syntheses [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 18 ]. Therefore, there is a need for optimization and development for producing SiO 2 -PPy core-shells with high efficiency of core-shell formation, which may result in the improved electrical and electrochemical performances.…”

Study on the Miscibility of Polypyrrole and Polyaniline Polymer Blends

“…is limitation affects all optical and electrical properties because of unfavourable processability. Hence, the enhancement of processability through enhanced miscibility of the PANI/PPy system is very desirable [16].…”