Characterization of electro-conductive fabrics prepared by in situ chemical and electrochemical polymerization of pyrrole onto polyester fabric

This paper reports a study on electro-conductive fabrics prepared by a combined in situ chemical and electrochemical polymerization of pyrrole. Specific observations are made to establish the roles of add-on and surface roughness on the surface resistivity of the electro-conductive fabrics. The performance characteristics of the fabrics are reported in terms of electrical conductivity, voltage-current and voltage-temperature characteristics and electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding capability. The surface resistivity of the fabric was found to be as low as 11.79 Ω. The voltage-current profile of the fabric is observed to be non-ohmic as well as the voltage-temperature curve is found to be exponential. The EMI shielding efficiency of the fabric was found to be about 98%.