Conducting polyaniline composites as microwave absorbers

Abstract Conducting polymers are excellent microwave absorbers and they show technological advantage when compared with inorganic electromagnetic absorbing materials, being light weight, easily processable, and the ability of changing the electromagnetic properties with nature and amount of dopants, synthesis conditions, etc. In this paper we report the synthesis, dielectric properties, and expected application of conducting composites based on polyaniline (PAN). Cyclohexanone soluble conducting PAN composites of microwave conductivity 12.5 S/m was synthesized by the in situ polymerization of aniline in the presence of emulsion grade polyvinyl chloride. The dielectric properties of the composites, especially the dielectric loss, conductivity, dielectric heating coefficient, absorption coefficient, and penetration depth, were studied using a HP8510 vector network analyzer. The microwave absorption of the composites were studied at different frequency bands i.e, S, C, and X bands (2–12 GHz). The absorption coefficient was found to be higher than 200 m⁻¹ and it can be used for making microwave absorbers in space applications. POLYM. COMPOS., 28:588–592, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastics Engineers