Structural, thermal and electrical properties of polypyrrole filled with ternary oxide cerium aluminate

Abstract

The effect of dispersion of fillers in different weight percentages on structural, electrical, and humidity sensing properties of polymer matrix has been investigated. Cerium-aluminate (ACO) was used as the filler material in the polypyrrole (PPy), and the dispersion of the filler was done by an in-situ chemical-polymerisation method. The nanocomposites were characterised by various techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and thermogravimetry/differential thermal analysis (TG/DTA). The room temperature electrical characterisations were carried out which showed that the lower (10 wt.% and 20 wt.%) and higher (30 wt.%, 40 wt.% and 50 wt.%) filler contents in nanocomposites make them behave like dielectrics and conductors respectively. The AC-conductivity of the PPy was decreased for 10 and 20 wt.% whereas increased for the higher wt.%. The humidity response was studied by using an impedance-analyser, which shows the improvement in sensing properties.