Electrical and spectroscopic characterization of p-toluene sulfonic acid doped poly(o-toluidine) and poly(o-toluidine) blends

Poly (o-toluidine) (PoT), a derivative of polyaniline was synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization method in aqueous media. After polymerization, the polymer prepared is doped with p-toluene sulfonic acid with different concentrations (2, 4, 6, 8 and 10% w/w). These polymers are blended with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to make self-supported films. The DC conductivity of both powder and blends is measured in the temperature range of 300–450 K and is found to increase with temperature. The Arrhenious plot of DC conductivity of PVC blended PoT shows two phases with different slopes. The samples are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The XRD pattern of the powder PoT and their blend shows the semi-crystalline nature of the samples. FTIR studies show the information of changes in functional groups with doping and blending of PoT with PVC.