Synthesis and characterization of PPY/K[Fe(CN)3(OH)(en)] nanocomposite: Study of photocatalytic, sorption, electrical, and thermal properties

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis work involves the synthesis of nanocomposite of Polypyrrole (PPY) with photoadduct {K[Fe(CN)3(OH)(en)]} via in‐situ oxidative chemical polymerisation. Photoadduct is synthesized by irradiating equimolar mixture of potassium hexacyanoferrate (III) and ethylenediamine (en) and is then reduced to nanosize by high energy ball mill. Successful synthesis of nanophotoadduct is confirmed by elemental analyser, UV–Vis, and FTIR. The nanocomposite of PPY and photoadduct has been characterised by SEM, TEM, FTIR, XRD, TGA, UV–Vis spectroscopy, I–V characteristics, and dielectric analysis for structural, thermal, optical, electrical, and dielectric properties. The average particle size of nanophotoadduct and nanocomposite has been found to be 80 and 84 nm, respectively. The thermal stability of nanocomposite is enhanced. The nanocomposite shows high value of dielectric constant (5 × 103 at103 Hz) and ac conductivity (7.0 × 108 Sm−1 at 106 Hz) as compared with pure PPY. The high value of dielectric constant can make the material suited for energy storage applications. The nanocomposite shows higher photocatalytic activity as compared with pure PPY and a high value of distribution coefficient (Kd) has been obtained for Pb2+, Zn2+, and Cd2+ ions, hence, can act as an efficient material for removal of dyes and heavy metal ions in waste water. Thus, photoadduct of K3[Fe(CN)6] and ethylenediamine(en), a new kind of filler, has succeeded in improving the properties of PPY with respect to thermal stability, high dielectric constant, high ac conductivity, efficient photocatalytic activity, and high Kd value for toxic metal ions. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43487.