Novel composite Polypyrrole/CNT fibres through wet spinning process

A soluble, doped polypyrrole has been synthesized using di (2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate as thedopant anion, the resultant polymer is soluble to levels as high as 100 g/l in common solvents suchas dimethyl propylene urea (DMPU), dimethylformamide (DMF) and dichloroacetic acid (DCAA).DCAA also acts as an excellent dispersing medium for single walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs). Asolvent containing both soluble polypyrrole and dispersed CNTs is shown to be suitable for theproduction of fibres using the conventional wet spinning approach. Robust and electricallyconducting polypyrrole composite fibres were produced. The ultimate tensile strength, elasticmodulus and elongation at break of these fibres were determined. The morphology of these novelcomposite fibres was characterised using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Cyclicvoltammetry and Raman spectroscopy were carried out to determine the electrical properties of thecomposite fibres. These fibres are likely to be important for electronic textile applications.