Surface characterizations of conductive poly(methyl methacrylate)/polypyrrole composites

The composites of poly(methyl methacrylate) and polypyrrole (PMMA/PPy) were prepared by a chemical oxidation of pyrrole in a PMMA latex medium resulting in a network like structure of polypyrrole embedded in the insulating polymer matrix. Water was used as the dispersion medium. The content of polypyrrole was determined by elemental analysis as varying from 0.25 wt.% to 10 wt.%. The electrical conductivity of prepared composites depends on the concentration of polypyrrole and reached values of between 1 x 10(-9) S/cm to 0.1 S/cm The surface of powder form of PMMA/PPy composites was characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The antistatic properties of compression moulding form of composites were tested. (C) 2000 Kluwer Academic Publishers.