Aniline/Ag⁺ to polyaniline/Ag nanocomposite in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate and phenylene diamine

Silver ion oxidized effectively aniline monomer in the presence of p‐phenylene diamine (PDA) promoter in sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) micellar medium to polyaniline/silver nanocomposite (PANI/Ag). To compare the results obtained, a sample of PANI polymer lacking Ag nanoparticles was also synthesized by a similar manner using ammonium peroxydisulfate instead of silver ion as the reaction oxidant. The use of PDA promoter/SDS emulsifier system could on one hand decrease the reaction time compared to those of reported previously, and on the other hand, allow the as‐reduced silver particles to stay nanosized. The Ag‐loaded PANI nanocomposite was structurally confirmed using Fourier transform‐infrared and X‐ray diffraction techniques. The uniformly‐dispersed Ag nanospheres with average particle size of ∼20 nm were clearly detectable in the bright‐field micrographs obtained from transmission electron microscopy. Furthermore, thermogravimetric analysis showed that major losses of the mass occurred at two temperature regions including 150–375°C and 375–800°C. POLYM. COMPOS., 36:253–256, 2015. © 2014 Society of Plastics Engineers