Improvement in Admicellar Polymerization of Polypyrrole on Cotton Fabric Using Precationization to Achieve High Electrical Conductivity

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis study aims to modify admicellar polymerization (AP) of polypyrrole (PPy) by increasing the adsorption of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) on cotton fabric. The PPy films were formed on the pristine and precationized cotton samples using the AP method. The samples were characterized by UV–Vis and attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic techniques, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the standard two‐probe method. The adsorbed amounts of SDS showed an increase up to 37% in the cationized samples. Both infrared spectroscopy and SEM images confirmed the formation of PPy layers on uncationized and cationized cotton samples. The agglomeration of PPy particles was also appeared on the uncationized fibers. However, a uniform distribution of PPy films was observed for the cationized cotton fabrics. Furthermore, the conductivity of these samples enhanced up to 49% (with a 0.0212 S/cm electrical conductivity). It was concluded that cotton precationization could result in a fabric with a very low resistance or improved conductivity.