Templating fabrication of polypyrrole nanorods/nanofibers

Nanostructured polypyrrole have been fabricated in high yield by chemical oxidation polymerization using one-dimensional rod-like aggregates of 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(4-sulfonatophenyl)porphyrin (TPPS4) as a template. This aggregate has the advantages of both soft and hard template such as stable, good versatility (for hard template), cheap, and easy removal (for soft template). Also, the molar ratio of TPPS4 and pyrrole monomer could be as low as 1:1000, showing a high efficiency of the template. Polypyrrole nanorods with variational size have been achieved successfully by using this versatile template and cooperating with the oxidants with different redox potentials. Moreover, in the presence of TPPS4 template and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), Polypyrrole (PPy) nanofibers were obtained even though using a weak oxidant. The formation of PPy nanorods/nanofibers was discussed and their properties including conductivity and thermalstability were evaluated.