Wet Chemical Synthesis of Entangled Nano-fibrous Conducting Polyaniline (PANI) Mesh: Effect of Heating and Stirring

An effect of heating and stirring in a facile wet chemical route to synthesize entangled nanofibrous mesh of doped polyaniline (PANI) was reported. The structural, morphological, and optical properties of PANI nano-fibers were found to be dependent on synthesis temperature and stirring. The XRD analysis confirms nano PANI formation with 2 θ peaks around 15°, 21°, and 25° for (011), (020), and (200) crystal planes, respectively. The average crystallite size varies between 25 nm to 60 nm due to change in synthesis conditions. The SEM analysis reveals the clustered granule formation for PANI sample synthesized at 28 and 60 ° under continuous stirring, whereas, unstirred synthesis at 60 ° shows entangled nano-fibrous mesh morphology. The TGA study shows better thermal stability for PANI mesh over granular PANI. The FTIR spectra validates the emeraldine salt PANI formation with peaks corresponding to C-H, C-N, N=Q=N, N=B=N, and N-H vibration bands. The UV-Vis analysis shows the major absorbance peaks around λ: 340 nm (π-π* transition of benzenoid ring), and λ: 800 nm (π-π*, polaron-π*, π-polaron transitions). The dense entangled nano-fibrous coating of PANI synthesized at 60 ° without stirring shows highest electrical conductivity of 3.79 S·cm -1 .