Grafting of poly(ethylene oxide) to the surface of polyaniline films through a chlorosulfonation method and the biocompatibility of the modified films

Poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) could be grafted on the surface of polyaniline (PANI) films by chlorosulfonating the films with chlorosulfonic acid followed by reacting the modified films with PEO in a pyridine solution. The modified PANI films were examined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and water droplet contact angles. The surface of the PEO grafted to hydrophobic PANI films became hydrophilic and the amounts of bovine serum albumin and human blood plasma platelet adsorbed onto it were decreased by more than 80%. For comparison purposes, and because the water wetting angle can be used as a measure of biocompatibility, wetting angle experiments have been also carried out for Pluronic triblock copolymer grafted to PANI and PEO or Pluronic molecules entrapped on the surfaces of PANI films. PANI was selected as substrate because one can easily change its surface properties by PEO grafting and because being conductive can be used as a sensor.     

Improved surface properties of polyaniline films by blending with Pluronic polymers without the modification of the other characteristics

Films of conductive polyaniline and amphiphilic Pluronic (P105) copolymer blends were prepared by dissolving the two polymers in N-methylpyrrolidinone (NMP) followed by a slow solvent evaporation at 55 degrees C. The characteristics of both doped and undoped films were determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), water droplet contact angles, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermal gravimetry analysis (TG), wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), and tensile strength measurements. The surface of the blends became more hydrophilic than that of the hydrophobic PANI film, but the other properties of the blends did not change appreciably for Pluronic content lower than 50 wt%. Compared to PANI films, the more hydrophilic surfaces decreased the amount of bovine serum albumin protein adsorbed. By preventing biofouling, the polyaniline-Pluronic blends can become more useful as biosensors than the polyaniline films.     

Preparation and characterization of a conductive polyaniline/polysulfone film and evaluation of the effect of co-solvent

A novel conductive dense membrane composed of polyaniline (PANI) and polysulfone (PSU) was prepared. To improve the solubility of PANI in N-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP) and consequently increase the conductivity of the eventual film, a tertiary amine (1,3-dimethyl-2-imidazolidinone, DMI) was added to the solvent as a co-solvent. Different PANI solution concentrations in NMP/DMI were used to make blend films via solution blending with PSU solution in NMP in different ratio’s of PANI/PSU. The effect of the PSU fraction on the properties of the membrane has been investigated. The electrical conductivity, doping degree, crystallinity, miscibility of the polymers and shape stability were investigated. It was observed that an increase in the PSU fraction causes a decrease in the conductivity as well as less film deformation after doping. The conductivity and shape stability of the blend film were optimized by a change in PANI concentration in the casting solution and a change in the PSU fraction. The best conductivity was achieved using 3% PANI solution in NMP/DMI and the minimum percentage of PSU, allowing good shape stability after doping, was found to be 40%.     

Polyaniline-coated carbon particles and their electrode behavior in organic carbonate electrolyte

In an attempt to increase the interface stability of carbon used in Li-ion batteries, a thin conducting polyaniline (PANI) film was fabricated on the surface of carbon by in situ chemical polymerization. The chemical and electrochemical properties of the composite material were characterized using X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscope, cyclic voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. It was confirmed that the PANI film has an obvious effect on the morphology and the electrochemical performance of carbon. The results could be attributed to the electronic and electrochemical activity of the conducting PANI films.     

显微共焦拉曼光谱研究电化学合成聚苯胺膜

显微共焦拉曼技术被用来研究电化学合成的聚苯胺（PANI）膜. 研究结果表明：在不同的激发光聚焦深度，聚苯胺膜的拉曼光谱有明显变化.从而反映出聚苯胺膜的掺杂程度在膜生长过程中随膜厚度的增长而增加. 并由X射线电子能谱（XPS）和紫外吸收光谱（UV）分析证实.     

Novel strategy in enhancing stability and corrosion resistance for hydrophobic functional films on copper surfaces

A rod-like 1-dodecanethiol film assisted with the preferential adhesion of polydopamine was prepared on the non-etching copper surfaces by a simple dip-coating method. The formation and surface structure of the film were characterized by water contact angle measurement, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Once the 1-dodecanethiol film formed on the polydopamine-coated copper surface, the hydrophilic surface changed to hydrophobic. The corrosion behavior of the functional films was evaluated by the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The excellent corrosion resistance property could be ascribed to the compact film structure and good seawater stability for modified copper surface, especially in limiting the infiltration of Cl⁻.     

Layer-by-layer self-assembled conducting polymer films at elevated pressure investigated by surface plasmon spectroscopy with electrochemistry

Polyaniline/sulfonated polyaniline (PANI/SPANI) multilayer films were fabricated using the layer-by-layer (LbL) technique. The electrochemical and optical properties of the film at elevated pressure were investigated by high-pressure surface plasmon spectroscopy combined with electrochemistry. Cyclic voltammograms of the PANI/SPANI films were performed at different hydrostatic pressure. It was found that the charge transfer currents decrease with elevated pressure. This indicates that the film becomes more compact with increasing hydrostatic pressure, which is confirmed by surface plasmon spectra, hinting at a substantial increase in the optical density.     

Surface composition and property of film prepared with aqueous dispersion of polyurethaneurea-acrylate including fluorinated block copolymer

The aqueous dispersion of polyurethaneurea-acrylate (PUA) including small amount of fluorinated block copolymers containing carboxyl groups (PATF), which can be dissolved in water, was used to make films and the surface properties of these films were examined. The experimental data show that the modified PUA film exhibits a hydrophobic surface property, although the original surface of PUA film is hydrophilic. The surface composition of the modified PUA film was measured by ATR and XPS. The results indicate that there is a concentration gradient of the fluorine groups along the lines of thickness of the modified film and towards the outmost surface layer, resulting from the migration of fluorinated blocks to the air side surface of the modified PUA film during the film formation process. However, the PUA film can not be modified effectively by adding the sodium salt of PATF, since the urethane groups in the system are easy to occupy on the surface of the film.     

Enzymatically synthesized polyaniline film deposition studied by simultaneous open circuit potential and electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance measurements

The chemical and enzymatic deposition of polyaniline (PANI) films by in situ polymerization was studied and the resulting films were characterized. The film formation and polymerization processes were simultaneously monitored by the evolution of the open circuit potential and quartz-crystal microbalance measurements. Different substrates, such as Indium-Tin oxide electrodes and gold-coated quartz-crystal electrodes were used as substrates for PANI deposition. Electroactive PANI films were successfully deposited by in situ enzymatic polymerization at low oxidation potential. The electrogravimetric response of the enzymatically deposited PANI film was studied by cyclic voltammetry in monomer-free acidic medium. The morphology of the films was observed by scanning electron microscopy, revealing a granular structure in enzymatically deposited PANI. The PANI films were also characterized by thermogravimetric analysis, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron and Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy. The simultaneous use of quartz crystal microbalance and open circuit potential is presented as a very useful technique to monitor enzymatic reactions involving oxidoreductases.     

一步法合成聚苯胺/十二烷基苯磺酸钠超疏水复合材料

在阴离子表面活性剂十二烷基苯磺酸钠(SDBS)体系中,采用一步法制得聚苯胺/SDBS超疏水复合材料.利用场发射扫描电子显微镜(FESEM)观察产物形貌并测定其元素组成.通过傅里叶变换红外光谱仪、紫外-可见光谱仪、X射线衍射等对其结构进行表征,用视频接触角测量仪测定材料的亲疏水性.考察SDBS浓度和溶液酸度对产物形貌及疏水性能的影响,探讨疏水机理.结果表明:在pH=1-9,SDBS浓度大于0.016 mol?L-1条件下,所制备复合材料的水接触角大于150°,SDBS掺杂使得苯胺单体的转化率高达98%.两亲分子SDBS亲水磺酸基与聚苯胺主链上的亚胺基不仅存在静电引力,而且能形成磺酰胺键,聚苯胺主链间又以氢键相互连接,SDBS分子的疏水烃基有序排列朝向聚苯胺主链外侧,从而组装形成具有微纳结构的聚苯胺/SDBS超疏水复合材料.本文结果有利于更好地理解聚苯胺/SDBS超疏水性复合材料的形成机理,对超疏水材料的设计提供新思路.     

纳米纤维聚苯胺膜在不锈钢电极表面的生长过程

研究了脉冲电流法(PGM)聚合苯胺时, 纳米纤维聚苯胺(PANI)膜在不锈钢(SS)电极表面的生长过程. 用计时电位法和扫描电子显微镜(SEM)表征了聚苯胺生长过程的电化学特征和微观形貌; 并通过循环伏安(CV)法研究了苯胺的聚合速率. 结果表明, 聚苯胺的生长经历了两个阶段, 首先是在裸不锈钢电极表面上形成颗粒状聚苯胺, 此时聚合电位约为1.10 V, 经历了30 s后, 电极表面被一层颗粒状聚苯胺膜所覆盖; 在此基础上, 聚苯胺以纳米纤维状结构继续生长, 当颗粒状聚苯胺被纳米纤维状聚苯胺膜完全覆盖时, 聚合电位降至0.75 V左右并保持稳定.     

The surface energy of hydrophilic and hydrophobic adsorbents

Water vapor adsorption and heats of water wetting are studied for hydrophilic quartz, hydrophobic-hydrophilic talc, and hydrophobized Silochrom samples. Water contact angles on the materials under examination are found. The surface thermodynamic parameters of the sorbents are calculated from the data obtained. It is shown that boundary water layers on hydrophilic quartz surface are ordered to a higher extent, while those on hydrophobic basal surfaces of talc particles and hydrophobic surfaces of modified Silochrom samples are ordered to a lower extent relative to liquid water. An empirical equation relating the surface pressure of water films adsorbed on hydrophilic high-energy surfaces with the surface free energy of the latter is proposed. The values of surface free energy are estimated from this equation for a number of important hydrophilic adsorbents.     

Stability of monomolecular films of archaebacterial tetraether lipids on silicon wafers: a comparison of physisorbed and chemisorbed monolayers

The monomolecular organisation of symmetric, chemically modified tetraether lipids caldarchaeol-PO(4) was studied using Langmuir film balance, ellipsometry, and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Solid silicon wafer substrates were modified to hydrophobic, hydrophilic, and amino-silanised surfaces; and Langmuir-Blodgett (LB)-films were transferred onto each. LB-caldarchaeol-PO(4) films were subjected to further rinsing with organic solvent and additional physical treatments, to compare their resistance and stability on chemisorbed (amino-silanised) and physisorbed (hydrophobic and hydrophilic) surfaces. The resistance and stability of these monolayer films was characterized by ellipsometry and AFM, and film thickness was determined using ellipsometry. AFM was also employed to observe surface morphology. Monolayer films on hydrophobic surfaces were found to be more resistant to rinsing with organic solvent and additional physical treatments than monolayer films on either amino-silanised or hydrophilic surfaces. The hydrophobic effect with hydrophobic surfaces appears to support the formation of stronger caldarchaeol-PO(4) films on silicon wafer substrates, with increased resistance and stability.     

Nanocomposite and nanoporous polyaniline conducting polymers exhibit enhanced catalysis of nitrite reduction

Nanostructured polyaniline (PANI) conducting polymer films were prepared on electrochemically pretreated glassy carbon electrodes, which were previously modified with multilayers of polystyrene (PS) nanoparticles with a diameter of 100 nm. PANI was electropolymerised and grown through the interstitial spaces between the PS nanoparticles, which formed a nanocomposite film of PANI and PS nanoparticles on the electrode surface. Furthermore, a nanoporous PANI film was fabricated through the removal of the PS nanoparticles by dissolution in toluene. As a result of their nanostructure, both of the PANI films (before and after removal of the PS nanoparticles) exhibited enhanced electrocatalytic behaviour towards the reduction of nitrite relative to bulk-PANI films; however, partial collapse or shrinkage may have occurred with the removal of the nanoparticles and could have resulted in a less enhanced response. Under optimised conditions, the nanocomposite-film-modified electrode exhibited a fast response time of 5 s and a linear range from 5.0 x 10(-7) to 1.4 x 10(-3) M for the detection of nitrite; the detection limit was 2.4 x 10(-7) M at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3.     

Fabrication of flexible gold films with periodic sub-micrometer roughness and their wettability control by modification of SAM

Flexible honeycomb gold films supported by polymer sheets are fabricated by using polystyrene particle monolayers. The surfaces of the flexible gold films are covered with self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of hydrophobic or hydrophilic thiol compounds, and the wettability of the modified surface is evaluated by measurements of the contact angles of water droplets. The contact angle of the film covered with hydrophobic SAM is ca. 150 degrees, which is greater than the value of 112 degrees for a flat gold surface, while the values for hydrophilic SAM are below 10 degrees.     

Preparation and characterization of polyaniline films in the presence of N-phenyl-1,4-phenylenediamine

The chemical oxidation of aniline to form polyaniline (PANI) films was made in the presence of N-phenyl-1,4-phenylenediamine (PPDA) in aqueous hydrochloric acid medium. The PANI films were monitored by using the quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) technique. The effect of PPDA and its concentration on the film formation was investigated. It was found that PPDA decreases the yield of the PANI film, the induction period and the depletion time of the polymerization. However, the growth rate of the film formation was found to increase by increasing PPDA concentration. These results were justified by measuring the UV-VIS absorption spectra for the in situ PANI films and the in situ UV-VIS absorption spectra for the polymer in the bulk during the polymerization. The conductivity for the PANI films at different concentrations of PPDA was measured. Also, the IR spectra, X-ray and the thermal gravimetric analysis for the PANI powder formed in the bulk in the presence of PPDA were measured and discussed.     

Adsorption of amyloid beta-peptide at polymer surfaces: a neutron reflectivity study.

The adsorption of amyloid beta-peptide at hydrophilic and hydrophobic modified silicon-liquid interfaces was characterized by neutron reflectometry. Distinct polymeric films were used to obtain noncharged (Formvar), negatively (sodium poly(styrene sulfonate)) and positively charged (poly(allylamine hydrochloride)) hydrophilic as well as hydrophobic surfaces (polystyrene and a polysiloxane-dodecanoic acid complex). Amyloid beta-peptide was found to adsorb at positively charged hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces, whereas no adsorbed layer was detected on hydrophilic noncharged and negatively charged films. The peptide adsorbed at the positively charged film as patches, which were dispersed on the surface, whereas a uniform layer was observed at hydrophobic surfaces. The thickness of the adsorbed peptide layer was estimated to be approximately 20 A. The peptide formed a tightly packed layer, which did not contain water. These studies provide information about the affinity of the amyloid beta-peptide to different substrates in aqueous solution and suggest that the amyloid fibril formation may be driven by interactions with surfaces.     

One-step route to the fabrication of highly porous polyaniline nanofiber films by using PS-b-PVP diblock copolymers as templates

We report a new method to control both the nucleation and growth of highly porous polyaniline (PANI) nanofiber films using porous poly(styrene-block-2-vinylpyridine) diblock copolymer (PS-b-P2VP) films as templates. A micellar thin film composed of P2VP spheres within a PS matrix is prepared by spin coating a PS-b-P2VP micellar solution onto substrates. The P2VP domains are swollen in a selective solvent of acetic acid, which results in the formation of pores in the block copolymer film. PANI is then deposited onto the substrates modified with such a porous film using electrochemical methods. During the deposition, the nucleation and growth of PANI occur only at the pores of the block copolymer film. After the continued growth of PANI by the electrochemical deposition, a porous PANI nanofiber film is obtained.     

聚苯胺电致变色薄膜在不同颜色区间的电化学循环稳定性研究

本文采用电位阶跃和循环伏安法结合紫外可见光光度法研究了聚苯胺薄膜的电致变色性质. 聚苯胺薄膜颜色多变,颜色在浅黄色到绿色再到蓝色之间变化,本文研究在不同的颜色变化区间内聚苯胺薄膜的电化学循环稳定性. 研究结果表明,薄膜在黄色到蓝色(0.4 V ~ 1.2 V)以及绿色到蓝色(0.8 V ~ 1.2 V)区间变化时,电致变色循环性能较差,而在黄色和绿色(0.4 V ~ 0.8 V)之间变化时循环稳定性能良好,着色时间为4.5 s,着色效率高达159.48 cm²·C^-1.     

Nanoscale measurements of conducting domains and current-voltage characteristics of chemically deposited polyaniline films

Spatial variations in electric conductivity and evolutions of band structures of polyaniline (PANI) films have been studied by use of a so-called current-sensing atomic force microscope (CS-AFM) or atomic force microscope current image tunneling spectroscopy (AFM-CITS). PANI films were deposited chemically onto indium-tin oxide- (ITO-) glass substrates, and their thickness and doping levels were controlled by polymerization and acid-doping conditions. The conducting uniformity of the PANI films depends on their doping level and thickness. Conducting domains were observed in fully doped PANI film, even when the bias voltage was reduced to as small as 30 mV. High current flowing regions gradually disappeared when conducting PANI films were partially dedoped. The point-contact current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of conducting tip-polymer/ITO systems were investigated on PANI films with different thickness and degree of doping. Various types of I-V curves representing metallic, semiconducting, and insulating states were obtained depending on the aggregation of polymer chains and doping level of the polymer film. The band gap energies (estimated from the I-V or dI/dV-V curves) of emeraldine base (EB) (undoped polyaniline) films are all higher than 3.8 eV, and a wide distribution of the band gap energies (0-1.1 eV and 0.75-1.8 eV for fully and partially doped PANI thin films, respectively) was found in a single polymer film.