Synthesis, Characterization and Electrorheological Properties of Polyaniline/Titanate Core-Shell Composite.

In this study, a facile method was developed for the preparation of a new conducting polymer composite with core-shell structure. The surfaces of layered titanate (K2Ti4O9) particles were first modified with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane, and then a polyaniline/titanate (PANI/K2Ti4O9) composite was synthesized via chemical oxidative polymerization. The resulting composites were characterized by SEM, XRD, FTIR and TG measurements. The results indicated that the PANI deposited on the surface of K2Ti4O9 particles resulted in the formation of the composite with a core-shell structure. TG analysis showed that the composite containing 28.7 wt% PANI had better thermal stability than that of pure PANI. Further, the PANI/K2Ti4O9 composite particles were adopted as a dispersed phase in silicone oil for electrorheological (ER) investigation. Suspension of the composite particles exhibited typical ER behavior subjected to an external electric field under steady and dynamic oscillatory shear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]