Role of p-Benzoquinone inthe Synthesis of a Conducting Polymer Polyaniline

摘要

Polyaniline (PANI) and 2,5-dianilino-p-benzoquinone both are formed by oxidation of aniline in an acidic aqueous environment. The aim of this study is to understand the impact of addition of p-benzoquinone on the structure of PANI prepared by the oxidation of aniline hydrochloride with ammonium peroxydisulfate and to elucidate the formation of low-molecular-weight byproducts. An increasing yield and size-exclusion chromatography, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and nuclear magnetic resonance analyses of the products show that p-benzoquinone does not act as a terminating agent in the synthesis of PANI and the content of 2,5-dianilino-p-benzoquinone increases with the increasing molar concentration of p-benzoquinone in the reaction mixture, [BzQ]. Regarding the structure of PANI, Raman and UV–visible spectra show that the doping level and the charge delocalization both decrease with the increase of [BzQ], and the FTIR spectra of the PANI bases indicate an increased concentration of benzenoid units at higher [BzQ]. We explain these observations by an increasing concentration of structural defects in PANI chains and propose a 2,5-dianilino-p-benzoquinone-like structure of these defects present as pendant groups. The bands typical of 2,5-dianilino-p-benzoquinone-likemoiety are observed even in the vibrational spectra of the sampleprepared without addition of p-benzoquinone. Thisconfirms in situ oxidation of aniline to p-benzoquinonewithin the course of the oxidation of aniline hydrochloride to PANI.