A Nanocomposite of Polyaniline/Inorganic Nanotubes

Polymer-inorganic nanoparticle composites are an area of great research interest. Inorganic fullerene-like (IF) structures and inorganic nanotubes (INT) are used for producing composite materials with specific goals of reinforcement of the polymer and ameliorating its thermal stability. Here, a composite material containing INT and conducting polymer (polyaniline (PANI)) is synthesized by an in situ oxidative polymerization of the monomer in the presence of WS2 nanotubes. The structure and electrical behavior of PANI/INT composite is studied and compared with the results of pristine PANI (synthesized under the same conditions without INT). Most remarkably, INT-WS2 are found to play the role of an active doping agent. The highest conductivity is obtained for 0.85 wt% (ca. 0.06 at%) nanotubes content, two orders of magnitude higher than that of pristine PANI. This work suggests a new approach to control the host-guest interaction in the polymer nanocomposite via (Lewis) acid-base equilibrium.