Synthesis of anisotropic defective polyaniline/silver nanocomposites

Abstract

The chemical synthesis of anisotropic defective polyaniline/Ag composite (PANI/Ag) is explored using silver nitrate (<TEX>$AgNO_3$</TEX>) as the precursor material. This study provides a simple method for the formation of PANI/Ag nanocomposites at two different aniline concentrations <TEX>$5{\mu}l$</TEX> (PANC5) and <TEX>$10{\mu}l$</TEX> (PANC10). The composite PANC5 exhibits UV-Visible absorption peaks at 436 nm and 670 nm whereas, PANC10 exhibits absorption peaks at 446 nm and 697 nm. This shift is caused by the strong interaction between polyaniline and silver. The characterized FTIR peaks observed at around <TEX>$3410cm^{-1}$</TEX> (PANC5) and <TEX>$3420cm^{-1}$</TEX> (PANC10) was due to the N-H stretching vibrations. The appearance of a broad band instead of a sharp peak can be attributed due to the presence of a high concentration of N-H groups in the nanocomposite. The TEM images show that the sample contains defective spherical, truncated triangular and rod shaped particles. The results showed that the PANI/Ag nanocomposites are composed of nano-sized particles of 43-53 nm that contain Ag domains of 33-37 nm with polymer thickness 5.7-11.2 nm at two different aniline concentrations.