Counter-ion induced processibility of conducting polyaniline

Abstract

By using a suitably functionalized acid to protonate the base form of polyaniline, the counter ion can induce processibility of the resulting PANI complex. Thus, polyaniline can be processed in its conducting form from the melt and/or from a wide variety of common organic solvents, such as decalin, xylene, chloroform and m-cresol, etc. The resulting conducting polyaniline can be processed neat or in blends with common, insulating bulk polymers to enable the fabrication of thin films, sheets, fibers, transparent conductive films, bulk parts, etc. These materials exhibit relatively high levels of electrical conductivity at low volume fractions of the polyaniline complex, while maintaining excellent mechanical properties, essentially equivalent to those of the host bulk polymer.