Synthesis of Nanosize polythiophene in the presence of DBSNa and PVP as surfactant

In this work homopolymers of thiophene were synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization method in the presence of two type of surfactants (anionic and non-ionic) and an oxidant in an aqueous medium. An anionic surfactant, sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (DBSNa) and a nonionic surfactant, Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), were used as additives. The properties of prepared polythiophenes (PThs) were studied and compared with polythiophene synthesized in the absence of surfactant . PThs were characterized by different techniques: Fourier transform spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy. The scanning electron micrographs of PT prepared in the presence of surfactants showed differences in the surface morphologies for different surfactants. PTh prepared in the presence of non-ionic surfactants exhibited smooth surfaces, while a typical globular structure was found for surfactant-free PTh. The morphologies of the resulting polythiophenes are greatly influenced by the presence of the surfactant additives in the polymerization solution. The results of FTIR spectroscopy indicate that the surfactants interact with PTh