Montmorillonite intercalated by conducting polyanilines Original Research Article

Structure and conductivity of nanocomposite conducting polymer/montmorillonite have been investigated for samples prepared by the polymerization of aniline hydrochloride with ammonium peroxodisulfate in aqueous suspension of montmorillonite. Samples were characterized by combination of X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD), IR spectroscopy and electrical conductivity measurements. Structure analysis based on combination of molecular modeling and experiment (XRPD and IR spectroscopy) revealed the structure of nanocomposite, including the interlayer structure of montmorillonite, and helped to understand the processes during nanocomposite preparation. Partial intercalation of polyaniline oligomers into the interlayer space of montmorillonite led to the large inhomogeneity of interlayer structure, which results in dramatic decrease of the electrical conductivity of nanocomposite in comparison with pure polyaniline.