Studies on stable aqueous poly(o-toluidine) prepared with the use of a water soluble support polymer,polyacrylamide

Polymerization of o-methylaniline or o-toluidine (OT) was studied in aqueous acidic (HCl) medium with or without the use of the support of a water soluble polymer, polyacrylamide (PAAm). Poly(o- toluidine) (POT) produced with PAAm support was in the form of aqueous solution or dispersion that showed high stability and good processibility. High degree of dispersion or near solubility and storage stability of POT thus prepared are explained on the basis of establishment of hydrogen bonding between segments of POT being formed and the PAAm present in the medium thus resulting in a template effect. Studies by UV-visible spectroscopy and FTIR spectroscopy lend support to this view. POT-PAAm composites commonly show higher thermal stability than POT and the composites show DC-electrical conductivities in the range of 10^?9–10^?1 S · cm^?1 depending on the POT content. Morphological analysis of the optically clear aqueous POT-PAAm solution by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) shows the presence of large clusters of PAAm-supported near-spherical POT nanoparticles in the aqueous PAAm solution. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) analysis of isolated POT-PAAm composites shows a cocontinuous phase morphology without any trend of gross phase separation. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 3243–3256, 1999