8-Hydroxyquinoline aluminum-polypyrrole and 8-hydroxyquinoline aluminum-polyaniline composites: A comparative study on the preparation and property

- A simple in situ polymerization method to fabricate Alq3-PPy and Alq3-PANI composites was reported in this paper.
- The influence of polymerization condition on the structure and property of Alq3-PPy and Alq3-PANI composites were discussed.
- A comparative discussion of the synthesis, structures, and conductivity properties on the Alq3-PPy and Alq3-PANI composites.
- The mechanisms of the Alq3-PPy and PANI based on the π-π interaction and H-bonding interaction were proposed and proved.

Polypyrrole (PPy) and polyaniline (PANI)-organometallic complexes were obtained by chemical oxidation of pyrrole and aniline with 8-hydroxyquinoline aluminum (Alq3) using ammonium persulfate as an oxidant. The mechanism of Alq3-PPy and Alq3-PANI composites based on π-π interaction and H-bonding interaction was proposed and proved by the changes in Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) diffraction peaks. The electric conductivity property of conducting composites was measured by means of the four-probe method. FTIR and X-ray diffraction (XRD) results showed that composites with different chemical structures, presented different crystallinity, which resulted in a different electric conductivities. The morphology of composites was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) were used for elemental analysis of composites. The optimal reaction condition of the Alq3-PPy and Alq3-PANI composites by in an situ polymerization method was established. It was the first time that the effect of Alq3-PPy and Alq3-PANI composites polymerization conditions on the morphology, structure and properties are comparative studied.