ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF CONDUCTIVE POLYMERS: PET – NANOCOMPOSITES’ FIBRES

Abstract

Researches in the field of conductive polymers have attracted considerable attention for more then 20 years. Among the conductive polymers, polyaniline and polypyrrole have drawn considerable interest because of their economical importance, good environmental stability and satisfactory electrical conductivity when doped. On the other hand, electrically conductive materials such as aluminium powder, graphite and carbon nanotubes have very interesting conductive properties and are promising in the synthesis of new composite conductive materials. In almost all studies, conducting polymer films are developed and then electrical and mechanical properties are tested. In our paper, the conducting polymer fibres have been obtained by melt mixing and chemical coating on the fibres. Different conductive materials have been used in order to obtain conductive polypropylene-based fibres with specific electrical and mechanical properties. The electric conductivity and morphological characteristics of these fibres have been investigated and the results are discussed. The originality of our approach lies in our having created conductive fibres based on conductive polymers. These fibres are intended for use in creating conductive yarns and realising connections in smart clothing, or producing conductive fabrics which can be used as electromagnetic shields. These developments have been carried out in order to create new multifunctional textile structures for different applications in the field of intelligent and communication apparel or other similar branches.