Synthesis and Characterization of Alkyl-Substituted Polyaniline by Using Ammonium Persulfate as both Oxidant and Dopant

Abstract

Poly (o-toluidine) (POT), poly (m-toluidine) (PMT) and poly (p-toluidine) (PPT) were chemically oxidized by ammonium persulfate (APS) as both oxidant and dopant through a very simple self-assembly process. The structure characterizations by elemental analysis, XPS and FTIR demonstrated that APS is served as both oxidant and dopant due to the proton acid produced during polymerization, which is proven by the decreasing pH value of the reaction solution along with the increase of polymerization time. Besides, the influences of the alkyl-substitution position on the molecular structure, polymerization process, morphology and electrical properties are also discussed.