Development of Novel Conducting Composites of Nanostructured Poly(1-naphthylamine) With Poly(vinyl chloride)

Investigations on the synthesis of nanoconducting polymers have gained much popularity during the past few decades. The processibility of the nanostructured conducting polymers is poor, which hinders their commercial application. Considering the drawbacks of nanostructured conducting polymers, this article reports for the first time the synthesis of processible composites of nanostructured poly(1-naphthylamine) (PNA), a polyaniline derivative with poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC). The composites were prepared by loading different weight ratios of PNA (2-10 wt%) in PVC. The composites were characterized by spectral, thermal, morphological, and conductivity studies. The particle size of PNA/PVC composites was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy and was found to be in the range of 520 nm. The highest conductivity of 2.5 x 10(-2) S/cm was obtained in the composite with 4 wt% loading of PNA. The high conductivity of the composites was correlated to the agglomerate-free uniform dispersion of self-assembled nanofibrillar network of PNA particles in the PVC matrix. The PNA/PVC composites exhibited good mechanical properties, which holds potential for use in semiconductor nanodevices. POLYM. COMPOS., 30:528-533, 2009. (C) 2008 Society of Plastics Engineers