Development of Electromagnetic Shielding Material from Conductive Blends of Polyaniline/Polystyrene‐isoprene‐styrene Copolymer

The interference of different electromagnetic waves is considered a major concern in the current era. Various materials serve as potential candidates for shielding, but polymer composites have gained attention due to their superior properties. Polymer composites of poly(styrene‐isoprene‐styrene) (SIS) and polyaniline (PANI) are prepared with the help of solvent casting technique to study electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness. To study the properties of these blends, different techniques were utilized, including FTIR, SEM, XRD. With the help of a conductivity test, the composites have shown improvement in electrical conductivity up to 1.18 Scm−1. Electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness was measured within the X‐band by using a vector network analyzer (VNA). The results observed showed an increase in attenuation up to 16dB upon optimum polyaniline concentration. The interaction and dispersion rate of filler is regarded as the primary aspect for enhanced properties. However, the agglomeration caused due to higher content of polyaniline resulted in decreased properties, i. e., 20 wt. % polyaniline. The prepared composites of SIS/PANI via solvent casting method were studied for shielding properties within X‐ frequency band. It was concluded that upon increasing the loading concentration of conducting polymer, the conductivity increased as well as the shielding effectiveness of the blend. The composite with 15 wt./wt. % (PS‐15) loading concentration of PANI showed the highest shielding effectiveness ∼ 16dB compared to other loading concentrations.