Characterization of electro-conductive fabrics prepared by in situ chemical and electrochemical polymerization of pyrrole onto polyester fabric

This paper reports a study on electro-conductive fabrics prepared by a combined in situ chemical and electrochemical polymerization of pyrrole. Specific observations are made to establish the roles of add-on and surface roughness on the surface resistivity of the electro-conductive fabrics. The performance characteristics of the fabrics are reported in terms of electrical conductivity, voltage–current and voltage–temperature characteristics and electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding capability. The surface resistivity of the fabric was found to be as low as 11.79 Ω. The voltage–current profile of the fabric is observed to be non-ohmic as well as the voltage–temperature curve is found to be exponential. The EMI shielding efficiency of the fabric was found to be about 98%.