Journal of Materials Science, Vol.44, No.13, 3542-3555, 2009
Metal oxide-assisted chemical synthesis of poly(alpha-naphthylamine) and characterizations
alpha-Naphthylamine (NA) was chemically polymerized using peroxy disulfate (PDS) as a chemical initiator under inert atmosphere at 45 A degrees C with vigorous stirring under various experimental conditions such as different concentrations of NA, PDS and different % weight of nanosized metal oxides like Sb2O3, CrO3, V2O5, Al2O3, As2O3 and ammonium heptamolybdate (AHM). Chemical kinetics inferred that rate of polymerization (R (p)) is 1.75 order of reaction with [NA] and 1.0 with [PDS]. FTIR spectroscopy confirmed that both benzenoid and quinonoid rings built up the structure of poly(alpha-naphthylamine) (PNA). Added metal oxides influenced the R (p), char forming capability of PNA and conductivity too through their surface catalytic effect. AFM confirmed the presence of nanosized materials in the polymer-nanocomposite structure. HRTEM was used to confirm the nanosize of metal oxides and the intercalation of PNA chains into the basal spacing of metal oxides.