Electrochemical Properties of Poly-3-methylthiophene Films: A Cyclic Voltammetry and Chronoamperometry Study

The charge transfer in poly-3-methylthiophene films in 0.05–0.5 M LiClO₄ solutions in acetonitrile is studied by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. An analysis of data on the current relaxation following a film perturbation by a low-voltage pulse reveals two constituents of the current relaxation, both exponentially dependent on time. Dependence of parameters of the empirical equation derived for the current relaxation on experimental variables is studied.     

The effect of the nature of the dopant on the sensor response of poly(3-methylthiophene) films

The effect of the nature of the dopant on the response of a sensor array based on films of poly(3-methylthiophene) under the influence of various organic solvents was studied. It was established that the electroconductivity of the polymer can both increase and decrease under the influence of the analytes. It was suggested that the main factors determining the magnitude of the response of poly(3-methylthiophene) are the ratio of the number of radical-cationic and dicationic states in the polymer, which depends on the nature of the dopant-anion, and also the polarity of the analyte. It was shown that the polymer has high sensitivity to chloroform vapor, which makes sensor arrays based on poly(3-methylthiophene) selective with respect to this analyte. __________ Translated from Teoreticheskaya i éksperimental’naya Khimiya, Vol. 42, No. 6, pp. 331–338, November–December, 2006.     

Copolymer electrosynthesis of ethyl-3-thiophene acetate and 3-methylthiophene and characterization of the resulting copolymers by spectroscopic studies

Copolymers of ethyl-3-thiophene acetate (ETA) and 3-methylthiophene (MT) were synthesized electrochemically. Electrospray ionization mass spectra of the electrolyte containing 2×10^–3 M MT + 3×10^–2 M ETA after copolymerization showed cooligomers with different combination of ETA and MT units. Just one value of the glass transition temperature was observed by differential scanning calorimetry of the formation of homogeneous copolymers. Change of the copolymer composition led to change of thermal stability characterized by thermogravimetric analysis. The morphology of the copolymer film was studied by scanning electron microscopy, indicating a homogeneous and compact film. The electroactivity of the homopolymer/copolymer films was studied. Cyclic voltammograms of the polymer films revealed that poly(ethyl-3-thiophene acetate) possesses high electroactivity in non-aqueous solution, but its electroactivity was lost entirely after 50 cycles in 0.1 M N(Bu)₄PF₆/acetonitrile solution having 5 volume percentage of water; however, the copolymer of ETA and MT maintains its high electroactivity even in the aqueous solution. Similar results were also derived from impedance and photoelectrochemical measurements. Additionally, it was found that a bilayer of poly(3-methylthiophene) and copolymer was formed.     

Enhanced redox stability and optical contrast of electrochromic copolymers from selenophene and 3-methylthiophene

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - A series of poly(selenophene-co-3-methylthiophene) films were synthesized by electrochemical copolymerization of selenophene and 3-methylthiophene under...     

Electrosynthesis of poly(3-methylthiophene) films: salt effect on the electrochemical and impedance properties

We studied the electrosynthesis of poly(3-methylthiophene) films in different electrolytes, i.e. 0.1?M quaternary ammonium salt solutions in acetonitrile. The analysis of the different results enabled us to explain the role of the cations and the anions of the electrolyte (doping agents) in the electrochemical synthesis and film properties. The films obtained with tetramethylammonium hexafluorophosphate (TMAPF₆) are more electroactive than those prepared using tetramethylammonium tetrafluoroborate (TMABF₄). This unexpected difference of behavior is due to the difference of hygroscopic properties of the two salts. We then characterized the films by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. This technique, used to investigate the electrochemical properties, allowed us to virtually design identical electrical-equivalent circuits for the two types of film (prepared either with TMAPF₆ or with TMABF₄). We noted dissimilarities in the values of the components of those equivalent circuits. The different components were separately studied and their differences were explained by the salt effects.     

Electrosynthesis and characterization of poly(3-methylthiophene) on different substrates

 We report on the study of the electropolymerization of 3-methylthiophene onto Pt, p-Si and indium-tin oxide deposited on polyester using quartz crystal microgravimetry, electrochemical and spectroelectrochemical measurements. We observe that potential variation during the galvanostatic electrodeposition is correlated with the nucleation process. The mass variation of poly(3-methylthiophene) is linear with the amount of the electrochemical charge whereas the absorbance variation curve shows two distinct slopes. The latter result has been explained in terms of conjugation length variation during polymer growth. Scanning electron microscopy analysis allowed the detection of morphological changes from a dense and compact structure to an open morphology when the poly(3-methylthiophene) film thickness increases. The roughness of the films did not change considerably with the substrate, as observed by atomic force microscopy. Absorption and photocurrent spectra at different film thicknesses show a shift of the peaks to lower wavelengths when the thickness increased, thus confirming the decrease of mean conjugation length in thicker films. Received: 1 September 1998 / Accepted: 11 November 1998     

ELECTROCHEMICAL COPOLYMERIZATION OF DIBENZOFURAN AND 3-METHYLTHIOPHENE IN BORON TRIFLUORIDE DIETHYL ETHERATE

The copolymerization of dibenzofuran(DBF)and 3-methylthiophene(MET)was successfully achieved electrochemically by direct anodic oxidation of the monomer mixtures in boron trifluoride diethyl etherate.The effects of applied polymerization potential and the monomer concentration ratios on the copolymerization were investigated by linear sweep voltammetry and cyclic voltammetry(CV).The structure of copolymer films were investigated by UV-Vis,infrared spectroscopy,thermal analysis.As-formed novel copolymers ...     

Poly(ortho‐toluidine) Modified Carbon Paste Electrode: A Sensor for Electrocatalytic Reduction of Nitrite

The electrocatalytic reduction of nitrite has been studied by poly(ortho‐toluidine) films modified carbon paste electrode (P‐OT/MCPE). Cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry techniques were used to investigate the suitability of poly(ortho‐toluidine) as a mediator for the electrocatalytic nitrite reduction in aqueous solution with various pH. Results showed that pH 0.00 is the most suitable for this purpose. In the optimum pH, the reduction of nitrite occurs at a potential about 600 mV more positive than unmodified carbon paste electrode. The catalytic reaction rate constant, (k_h), was calculated 8.68×10² M^?1 s^?1 by the data of chronoamperometry. The catalytic reduction peak current was linearly dependent on the nitrite concentration and the linearity range obtained was 5.00×10^?4 M–1.90×10^?2 M. Detection limit has been found to be 3.38×10^?4 M (2σ). This method has been successfully employed for quantification of nitrite in real sample.     

Electrochemical preparation of PMeT/TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> nanocomposite electrochromic electrodes with enhanced long-term stability

In this work, 3-methylthiophene (MeT) was electrochemically incorporated with nano- and mesoporous TiO₂ films to form poly(3-methylthiophene) (PMeT)/TiO₂ nanocomposite electrochromic electrodes. TiO₂ films, which were previously coated on the ITO glass sheets through a well-established technique, were introduced to enhance the adhesion of the polymers to the substrates and thus increase the long-term stability of the devices. With this effort, the nanocomposite electrodes were found to retain up to 60% of their optical response after 3,500 deep and double potential steps and retain up to 50% of their electroactivity after 10⁴ same steps, exhibiting enhanced long-term stability. Switching time and the maximum optical contrast (ΔT%) of the nanocomposite electrodes were found to be 0.6 s and 45%, respectively. Moreover, our work showed that electrochemically incorporating conductive polymers (CPs) with TiO₂ mesoporous films was an effective method to form high-quality CP/TiO₂ nanocomposite electrodes, which can be used widely in battery cathodes, photovoltaic cells, photocatalytic reaction, and photoelectrochromic cells and were supposed to enhance their performances.     

The origin of DC electrical conduction and dielectric relaxation in pristine and doped poly(3‐hexylthiophene) films

We present here the evidence for the origin of dc electrical conduction and dielectric relaxation in pristine and doped poly(3‐hexylthiophene) (P3HT) films. P3HT has been synthesized and purified to obtain pristine P3HT polymer films. P3HT films are chemically doped to make conducting P3HT films with different conductivity level. Temperature (77–350 K) dependent dc conductivity (σ_dc) and dielectric constant (ε′(ω)) measurements on pristine and doped P3HT films have been conducted to evaluate dc and ac electrical conduction parameters. The relaxation frequency (f_R) and static dielectric constant (ε₀) have been estimated from dielectric constant measurements. A correlation between dc electrical conduction and dielectric relaxation data indicates that both dc and ac electrical conductions originate from the same hopping process in this system. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 1047–1053, 2010     

Effect of electrolyte cations on the charge transfer in films of prussian blue

Charge transfer in films of Prussian blue is studied by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry at potentials of first (PB/PW) and second (PB/PY) redox processes in solutions of potassium, cesium, and ammonium nitrates (pH 4.0). The current relaxation following a film perturbation by a small-amplitude voltage pulse is analyzed with theoretical relationships obtained earlier for the charge transfer in redox polymers. Parameters, characterizing the charge transfer rate (formal diffusion coefficient, instantaneous current), are calculated and analyzed as a function of the film oxidation state and the supporting-electrolyte nature     

The effect of electrolyte-controlled growth morphology on the charge transport properties of poly(3-methylthiophene)

Poly(3-methylthiophene) films were potentiostatically and galvanostatically synthesized on platinum electrodes in acetonitrile using lithium perchlorate, lithium tetrafluoroborate, tetra-n-butylammonium perchlorate, and tetra-n-butylammonium tetrafluoroborate as supporting electrolytes. Cyclic voltammetric analyses of the polymer films indicate the synthesis is polymerization process dependent. Constant potential syntheses, which resulted in a higher current density and were carried out at higher potentials, yielded polymer films with a higher charge capacity. Chronocoulometric results show that the charge transport rates of the films were electrolyte dependent and that tetra-n-butylammonium tetrafluoroborate yielded poly(3-methyl-thiophene) with the highest charge transport rate. The charge transport rate was found to be electric field dependent for all cases, suggesting that the films resemble a porous electrode. Scanning electron microscope analyses of the films, prepared under various conditions, indicate that the synthesis method used, and the nature of the electrolyte, strongly influence morphology and charge transport.     

Gradient doping of conducting polymer films by means of bipolar electrochemistry

In this paper, we report a novel electrochemical doping method for conducting polymer films based on bipolar electrochemistry. The electrochemical doping of conducting polymers such as poly(3-methylthiophene) (PMT), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), and poly(aniline) (PANI) on a bipolar electrode having a potential gradient on its surface successfully created gradually doped materials. In the case of PEDOT film, the color change at the anodic side was also observed to be gradually transparent. PANI film treated by the bipolar doping gave a multicolored gradation across the film. The results of UV-vis and energy dispersive X-ray analyses for the doped films supported the distribution of dopants in the polymer films reflecting the potential gradient on the bipolar electrode. Furthermore, the reversibility of the bipolar doping of the PMT film was demonstrated by a spectroelectrochemical investigation.     

Enhanced photoresponse of poly(3-methylthiophene) supported on TiO2

We have investigated the photoelectrochemical behavior of poly(3-methylthiophene) supported on nanostructured n-TiO₂ in a solid-state photoelectrochemical device. As electrolyte we employed the elastomer poly(epichlorohydrin-co-ethylene oxide) filled with NaI/I₂. Under polychromatic light irradiation (60 mW cm⁻²) the device exhibits an open circuit voltage, a short-circuit current and fill factor of 10 μA cm⁻², 0.048 V and 0.29, respectively. The overall efficiency of the cell is 2.3×10⁻²%.     

The ionic mechanism of the electrochemical doping of poly (3–methylthiophene) studied by secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS)

The concentration profiles of C10₄⁻ and Li⁺ into the poly(3-methylthiophene) structure were referred to the 3-methylthiophene concentration for several doping levels during the doping and the undoping processes. The ion amount is very different in the polymer bulk and in a surface region of about 150 Å thickness. The cation is shown to play a role in the first step of the undoping mechanism. The paired ions concentration was determined and an actual doping ratio could be deduced which is different from that calculated by coulometry.     

Tuning of the charge and energy transfer in ternary CdSe/poly(3-methylthiophene)/poly(3-hexylthiophene) nanocomposite system

Composite CdSe:poly(3-methylthiophene) (P3MT) nanoparticles have been synthesized via polymerization of 3-methylthiophene (3MT) in the presence of CdSe particles of nanorod or dot-like morphology and dispersed in the poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) matrix. The effect of the P3MT layer to mediate charge and energy transfer between CdSe and P3HT in the ternary nanocomposite system has been studied using electronic absorption, photoluminescence spectroscopy, and current–voltage measurements. The energy level diagram of the composite system has been deduced based on optical and electrochemical data of the separate components of the system. The contribution of the low- and high-molecular fractions of P3MT to control the charge transfer in order to optimize the intermediary role of P3MT is analyzed. Particularly, it was shown that excitation of the low-molecular P3MT leads to energy transfer to both CdSe and P3HT components, and it also serves as a barrier against recombination of electrons and holes separated at CdSe and P3HT, respectively. Thus, the role of the P3MT interlayer in assisting the charge separation and increasing an open-circuit voltage in the photovoltaic cell based on the ternary system is demonstrated.     

DOPING LEVEL INCREASE OF POLY(3-METHYLTHIOPHENE)FILM DURING ELECTROCHEMICAL POLYMERIZATION PROCESS

The Raman spectra of poly(3-methylthiophene) (PMeT) films with different thicknesses, which have beenelectrochemically deposited on a flat stainless steel electrode surface by direct oxidation of 3-methylthiophene in borontrifluoride diethyl etherate (BFEE) at a constant applied potential of 1.38 V (versus SCE), have been investigated byexcitation with a 633-nm laser beam. The spectroscopic results demonstrated that the doping level of PMeT film wasincreasing during film growth. This finding was also confirmed by electrochemical examination. Moreover, the Raman bandsassigned to radical cations and dications in doped PMeT films were found approximately at 1420 and 1400 cm~(-1),respectively. Radical cations and dications coexist on the backbone of PMeT as conductive species and their concentrationsincrease with the increase of doping level. Successive cyclic voltammetry was proved to be an effective approach toimproving the doping level of as-grown thin compact PMeT film.     

Competition between Polymerization and Dissolution of Poly(3-methylthiophene) Films

Films of electrically conducting polymer, poly(3-methylthiophene), are dissolved in monomer-free solutions at positive potentials to become thin, whereas they are polymerized in monomer-rich solutions at the same potentials as for the dissolution. A question arises whether they are dissolved or polymerized in solutions including a given concentration of the monomer when a positive potential is applied to the film. Conditions of the competition between the polymerization and the dissolution were searched at potentiostatic experiments for poly(3-methylthiophene) films at various concentrations of monomers and potentials. The dissolution prevailed over the polymerization as the concentration decreased and the potential was less positive. Chronoamperometric currents exhibited oscillation under the competition conditions. The oscillation was explained in terms of the Lotka–Volterra model for a simple oscillation reaction, in which competitive species were the conducting polymer and the monomer.     

Site-controlled application of electric potential on a conducting polymer "canvas"

A novel patterning method for conducting polymer films was successfully demonstrated using the concept of bipolar electrochemistry. The local application of an anodic potential to poly(3-methylthiophene) (PMT) and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) on a bipolar electrode (BPE) realized local electrochemical doping and reaction depending on the supporting salt used. The potential applied on the BPE was measured and corresponded well to the patterns. The array-type driving electrode system was able to draw complex patterns in a site-controlled manner.     

Influence of the texture of chromia catalysts on their activity in synthesis of 2-methylthiophene

The texture of Cr₂O₃-K₂O/Al₂O₃catalysts containing oxides of rare earth elements (REE) was studied. The catalysts are used for the synthesis of 2-methylthiophene by the reaction of H₂S with n-pentane or piperilene. The heterocyclization of n-pentane is a consecutive reaction involving a step of dehydrogenation of initial hydrocarbon. At this step the texture of the catalyst affects the yield of 2-methylthiophene. The yield of 2-methylthiophene obtained from piperilene and I₂S is independent of the catalyst texture.