Effect of Diameter of Cellulosic Nano-Fiber on Conductivity of Poly(Aniline Sulfonic Acid) Composites

The authors have been studying the effect of cellulosic nano-fiber (CeNF) with the diameter of less than 30 nm and the length of a few micrometers on the conductivity of the conductive polymer composites (PAS/PEs/CeNF) prepared from poly(aniline sulfonic acid) (PAS), a water dispersible polyester (PEs) and CeNF and confirmed that CeNF was effective for the enhancement of their conductivity, and that the conductivity enhancement was attributable to the strong adsorbing ability of CeNF to PAS molecules. Thiner CeNF has so larger surface area that it is expected to adsorb more PAS molecules on its surface, which possibly lead to further conductivity enhancement of the composites. The authors prepared thinner CeNF with the size of 16 nm by the use of ultrasonic dispersing machine. It was clarified that the thinner CeNF had a higher adsorbing ability to PAS molecules and a larger effect on the conductivity enhancement of PAS/PEs/CeNF composites.