Dendritic superstructure formation of polyaniline prepared using a water-soluble polyelectrolyte copolymer as the support matrix

In this letter, we report a dendritic superstructure formation of polyaniline (PANi) via a chemical oxidation approach using ammonium peroxydisulfate (APS) as the oxidant and a water-soluble polyelectrolyte copolymer as the dopant and support matrix. The morphology and the reaction conditions have been correlated, and a possible formation mechanism was proposed. It is suggested that the complex formation between the polyelectrolyte and aniline oligomer functions as nuclei which directs the further growth of polyaniline to dendritic superstructure.