Control of polyaniline deposition on microporous cellulose ester membranes by in situ chemical polymerization

Polyaniline (PANI) can be deposited either on the surface or in the bulk of a microporous membrane by various chemical oxidative polymerization techniques. Each technique has distinctive effects on the PANI site and extent of deposition on the base membrane. In the present study, mixed cellulose ester (ME) membranes with tortuous pore morphology were used as base membranes. The chemical oxidative polymerization techniques employed, included polymerization using an in-house-built two-compartment permeation cell. The resultant composite membranes have been characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR), and electrical conductivity measurements. The results showed that PANI was layered on the pore walls of the membrane using two-compartment permeation cell. Vapor-phase polymerization yielded a surface layer of PANI with little deposition in the bulk. A distorted PANI surface layer was achieved by solution-phase (dip) polymerization. Moreover, asymmetric PANI deposition within the membrane bulk was evidenced using two-compartment permeation cell. Composite membranes synthesized using two-compartment cell showed highest levels of conductivity (10−2 S/cm) as compared to the membranes modified by single-step solution-phase polymerization. FTIR-ATR results indicated the extent of PANI coating and its oxidation state which was identified as doped emeraldine PANI, from all the employed techniques. Asymmetric deposition and extent have been explained in terms of the physical and chemical reaction steps involved in the heterogeneous aniline polymerization reactions in the two-compartment cell technique.