A Study on the Synthesis, Characterization and Properties of Polyaniline Nanofibers Using Ferric Chloride as both Oxidant and Dopant

PANI nanofibers with a really nanoscaled diameter of 20 ~ 30 nm and a high conductivity of 10 0 S/cm were successfully prepared by using FeCl 3 · 6H 2 O as oxidant at the acidic dopant-free. Compared with other synthetic methods for nanostructures, this approach is most simple and cheap because of FeCl 3 · 6H 2 O having two-function of oxidant and dopant at the same time, resulting in further simplifying reaction reagents. Characterizations of UV-visible, FTIR spectra, XRD as well as conductivity measured by four-probe method definitely proved the nanofibers oxidized by FeCl 3 as oxidant at dopant-free are identical to the emeraldine salt form of PANI, although without external acidic dopant, and Cl - anion is incorporated the PANI main chain as counter-ion.