Probing the electrical and dielectric properties of polyaniline multi-walled carbon nanotubes nanocomposites doped in different protonic acids

Investigating the electrochemical properties of poly(vinylidene fluoride)/polyaniline blends doped with lithium-based salt

Conductive polymers have attracted much attention in various applications, owing to their excellent chemical, thermal, and oxidative stability. However, they have low dielectric constant, which limits their performance in electrochemical devices. To overcome this drawback, blending with other polymers helps improving their electrochemical properties. Herein, we investigate structural and electrochemical properties of poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF)/polyaniline (PANI) blends doped with lithium-based salt. Results showed that the blends exhibit phase separation of PANI and PVDF, which is confirmed by the thermodynamic interaction parameter. We found that the interaction between the two polymers enhanced the ionic conductivity from 4.9 × 10-5 S cm-1 for neat PVDF to 5.3 × 10-4 S cm-1 for composition of 50:50 (PANI50), whereas the ionic conductivity was inversely proportional to the temperature. Moreover, by adding lithium salt to the blend, the thermal stability increased from 376.6 to 478.5 °C for PANI50. The ionic conductivity of the blends depends on the PVDF content, which affects the interaction between the two polymers.

Effect of carbon allotropes and thickness variation on the EMI shielding properties of PANI/NFO@CNTs and PANI/NFO@RGO ternary composite systems

The innovative design of thin, multiphase flexible composite systems with good mechanical properties, low density and improved EMI shielding properties at low filler content has become a key area of research. In this work, we report the low temperature synthesis of three-dimensional ternary composites (PANI/NFO@CNTs and PANI/NFO@RGO) by oxidative chemical polymerization of aniline in the presence of two different binary composites, viz. NFO@CNTs and NFO@RGO. Enhanced impedance matching is achieved by varying the ratio of the carbon allotropes (CNTs and RGO) to the ferrite component. The synthesis of NFO, PANI/NFO@CNTs and PANI/NFO@RGO is validated by XRD and FTIR spectroscopy. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) confirmed the synthesis of core-shell structures of PANI/NFO@CNTs and PANI/NFO@RGO, where the binary composites (NFO@CNTs and NFO@RGO) serve as a core onto which a tubular PANI layer was coated. Shielding effectiveness of 22.36 dB (99.41% attenuation) is exhibited by the ternary composite PANI/NFO@CNTs (8 : 1), while for PANI/NFO@RGO (20 : 1) a total shielding effectiveness of 31 dB equivalent to 99.92% attenuation was observed at a thickness of 2 mm. The ternary composite PANI/NFO@RGO (20 : 1) 4 mm showed a maximum SET of 43 dB corresponding to 99.996% attenuation of incident EM waves. The enhanced EMI shielding properties of the synthesized ternary composite systems are accredited to good impedance matching, effective dielectric and magnetic loss mechanisms and good conductivity, which facilitate multiple reflections and scattering of incident radiation.

Epidermal Inspired Flexible Sensor with Buckypaper/PDMS Interfaces for Multimodal and Human Motion Monitoring Applications

The advancements in the areas of wearable devices and flexible electronic skin have led to the synthesis of scalable, ultrasensitive sensors to detect and differentiate multimodal stimuli and dynamic human movements. Herein, we reveal a novel architecture of an epidermal sensor fabricated by sandwiching the buckypaper between the layers of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS). This mechanically robust sensor can be conformally adhered on skin and has the perception capability to detect real-time transient human motions and the multimodal mechanical stimuli of stretching, bending, tapping, and twisting. The sensor has feasibility for real-time health monitoring as it can distinguish a wide range of human physiological activities like breathing, gulping, phonation, pulse monitoring, and finger and wrist bending. This multimodal wearable epidermal sensor possesses an ultrahigh gauge factor (GF) of 9178 with a large stretchability of 56%, significant durability for 5000 stretching-releasing cycles, and a fast response/recovery time of 59/88 ms. We anticipate that this novel, simple, and scalable design of a sensor with outstanding features will pave a new way to consummate the requirements of wearable electronics, flexible touch sensors, and electronic skin.