(119a) Size and Shape Control of Polyaniline Nanoparticles

Polyaniline nanoparticles are conducting polymers under investigation for their potential use in batteries, sensors, actuators, coatings, membranes and organic memory devices. We report a synthetic strategy to create substituted polyaniline nanoparticles by introducing an aniline based initiator into the rapidly mixed reaction, previously developed in our lab. With the intention of varying polymer morphology, monomers of aniline monosubstituted on the ortho or meta position with bromine were reacted with various initiators. After purification the polymers are characterized via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis), and Fourier Transform infrared spectrometry (FT/IR). Preliminary results show that several initiators can promote nanoscale polymer growth, while the specific size and shape observed is dependent upon several factors, particularly the monomer unit and initiator used.