Study the effect of inorganic salts on the chemically polymerized aniline films using quartz crystal microbalance

The chemical oxidation of aniline with ammonium peroxydisulfate to form polyaniline (PANI) films has been studied in different aqueous acid mediums such as HCl, HNO₃, and H₂SO₄. The yield and the growth rate of the PANI film deposition were measured using the quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) technique. The effect of different salts such as KCl, NaNO₃, and K₂SO₄ and their concentration on the yield and the growth rate of the film formation are investigated. The yield of PANI film deposition depends on the acid used and the type of salts as well as their concentrations. When HCl and HNO₃ were used as media, the addition of salts with the same anion has no effect. However, when H₂SO₄ was used as media, the addition of salts with the same anions as the medium enhances the yield of PANI film deposition. The UV–visible spectra of the produced PANI films in the absence and presence of the salts are also studied. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.