CONDUCTING POLYMER COMPOSITES OF PYRROLE WITH POLYACRYLIC-ACID AND EPOXY MATRICES

Composites of the conducting polymer polypyrrole (PPy), in host matric es of polyacrylic acid and a bisphenol A based epoxy, have been prepar ed chemically. Various methods such as in situ polymerization and disp ersion of PPy in the polymeric matrices were used to prepare the compo sites. Amine hardeners and Co-60 radiation curing were utilized to cro sslink the samples. Colloidal stability of PPy was also studied due to the difficulty encountered in the preparation of homogeneous composit es via the dispersion method. The agglomeration of PPy is related to t he zero surface charge of PPy particles.