Surface conductive films via polymerization on a liquid surface

Surface conductive crosslinked polybutyl acrylate (c-PBA) films were prepared in two steps. In the first step, a mixture containing the monomer of the conductive polymer (pyrrole or 3-methylthiophene) and the precursors of c-PBA (butyl acrylate, a crosslinking reagent, and the initiator 2,2′-azobisisobutyronitrile) was spread over the surface of a hot 2 wt.% poly (vinyl alcohol) aqueous solution, and allowed to polymerize. In the second step, the pyrrole or 3-methylthiophene containing c-PBA film was immersed into an iron chloride solution in ethyl acetate for the monomer present in the film to be oxidatively polymerized and to generate a conductive coating layer near the surface of the film. The highest conductivities achieved were 1 S/cm for polypyrrole and 18 S/cm for poly (3-methylthiophene). The effects of the oxidation polymerization time, the amount of monomer precursor of the conductive polymer, the concentration of the oxidant solution, and the extent of crosslinking of c-PBA were investigated.