Studies the behaviors of polyaniline on the properties of PS/PMMA blends

Abstract

The effect of dispersion of polyaniline on the mechanical, morphology, electrical, and thermal properties of the PS/PMMA blends prepared by solution casting fabrication process was investigated. PS/PMMA (50/50) wt% blend with 3% pluronic and 1% polyaniline gave the best tensile strength in comparison with other blends. So, different concentrations from polyaniline (1, 3, 5, 10, 15, and 20 wt%) were evaluated to obtain the suitable effective concentrations that can be used. The morphology suggests that 3% pluronic and 1% polyaniline can act as mechanical compatibilizer between PS and PMMA as well as a thermodynamic compatibilizer. The thermal stability of the PS/PMMA (50/50 wt%) blend with different concentrations of polyaniline in the presence of 3% pluronic was studied using thermogravimetric analysis, which showed an increase in thermal stability due to the presence of polyaniline. The dielectric investigations reflected an increase in both the permittivity and dielectric loss with increasing the content of polyaniline (PANI), due to interfacial polarization and conductivity effects. In addition the increase in the conductivity of the composites is related to the increase of the conductive paths among the filler. The pathway of conductive filler was easy to form lower percolation threshold of the composite due to better dispersion of PANI. However, composites with low percolation threshold will be favorites for the practical applications with regard to the less deteriorated mechanical properties and processability.