Structural, thermal and dielectric studies of polypyrrole nanotubes synthesized by reactive self degrade template method

In this work we investigate the structural, thermal and dielectric properties of polypyrrole nanotubes synthesized by in situ chemical oxidative polymerization method. Cetyl trimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) modified Methyl Orange (MO)-FeCl3 reactive self degrade template is used to support the growth of PPy nanotubes. The diameter of the tubes decreased with increase in CTAB concentration and found to be 140-52 nm. The synthesized polypyrrole nanotubes are investigated by high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), FTIR, UV-vis, conductivity measurements, TGA and impedance analysis. TGA analysis shows decrease in decomposition rate with decrease in tube diameter. The response of the charge carriers to the ac field is also carried out in the frequency range of 42 Hz-5 MHz. The shifting of peak towards higher frequency in imaginary modulus formalism with decrease in CTAB concentration suggests faster relaxation.