Electrical response of Poly(styrene)/carbon black conductive polymer composites (CPC) to methanol, toluene, chloroform and styrene vapors as a function of filler nature and matrix tacticity

We have studied the sensing properties of several conductive polymer composites (CPC) to saturated solvent vapors (methanol, toluene, chloroform and styrene) as a function of carbon black (CB) structure and poly(styrene) PS crystal Unity. It appears that the combination of these two previous parameters allows obtaining very different electrical signature for the four vapors studied, confirming the importance of the carbon black conductive pathways morphologies structuring during the process. This study shows that selectivity of the CPC toward the vapors can be obtained not only by changing the matrix chemical nature but also by tailoring the morphology of the CB network.