Physical-Chemical Effects of Nanoparticles on Electropolymerized Polyaniline

The incorporation of nanoparticles on polymer films is possible to obtain materials with desired properties. In the present work, we address the physical-chemical influence of nanoparticles in polymer films by producing and characterizing polyaniline hybrids with SiO2 and Au nanoparticles and comparing them with films with TiO2 nanoparticles. The hybrid films were characterized by SEM, EDS, UV-Vis, AFM, Raman, and cyclic voltammetry. Unlike TiO2 nanoparticles, SiO2 and Au nanoparticles do not promote any noticeable change in polyaniline oxidation state in less acid environments (pH 5.9 and 6.15). However, in those environments, the presence of nanoparticles significantly increases the film's conductivity. At a pH of 1.5 and 3.9, all three kinds of nanoparticles are screened by ions from the solution diminishing their physical-chemical effects on polyaniline. Thus, our results suggest that, in general, nanoparticles don't have any physical-chemical effects on polyaniline films when deposited in acid enough environments but can change their physical and chemical properties when deposited in less acid environments.