Polyaniline (PANI) samples were synthesized by an ultrasonic irradiation synthesis method and by a magnetic stirring process. The structure of the polyanilines was investigated by using infrared and UV-vis-NIR spectral analysis, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, electron diffraction, and elemental analysis. The results clearly show that the crystallinity of polyaniline synthesized by using the ultrasonic synthesis method is much higher than that synthesized by the stirring synthesis method under similar conditions. Transmission electron microscope observation shows that the polyaniline powder synthesized by using the ultrasonic method consists mainly of hexagonal plates. Electron diffraction results show that the plates are small single crystals with well-developed hexagonal morphology. The lattice parameter of the crystal is a ) b ) 4.56 Å. A network structure model of crystalline polyaniline is proposed. The results of elemental analysis and the solubilities of the two types of PANI support this model. The conductivity and thermopower of polyaniline synthesized by the ultrasonic method are lower than the same properties exhibited by samples synthesized by the conventional method. The results indicate that polyaniline with higher crystallinity does not possess higher conductivity.

A Raman scattering study of the vibrational modes in K 2 Al 2 B 2 O 7 crystals has been performed at room temperature. The vibrational modes are classified by the nuclear site group analysis method and the internal vibrational modes are assigned to vibrations of the BO 3 triangle and AlO 4 tetrahedron.

Skutterudite Na1+ x Fe4P12 whiskers were prepared by a new hydrothermal reduction alloying method. The diameter of the whisker is about 0.5−4 μm and its L/D ratio is about 10−20. Heating temperature and time can control the diameter and length of the skutterudite whisker. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), electronic diffraction (ED), and X-ray fluorescence analysis have been employed to characterize the products. XRD and ED revealed that the whiskers obtained at 200 °C are cubic skutterudite with a = 7.7995 Å. X-ray fluorescence analysis proved that there are sodium atoms in the skutterudite structure. The possible formation mechanism of Na1+ x Fe4P12 is proposed.

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