Preparation of PANI-coated poly (styrene-co-styrene sulfonate) nanoparticles in microemulsion media

Electrically conductive core–shell nanoparticles (PANI/PS-PSS) were synthesized by coating poly (styrene-co-styrene sulfonate) (PS-PSS) nanoparticles with polyaniline (PANI). PS-PSS core particles were prepared in microemulsion system in nitrogen atmosphere and further coated with PANI by using in situ polymerization method at low temperature. The core–shell structure of PANI/PS-PSS composites was determined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and FTIR measurements. In addition, the role of the aniline content was also investigated. The stability of the coated latexes and the conductivity of PANI/PS-PSS pellets were investigated. It was found that the core–shell structure of PANI-coated PS-PSS can be obtained when PANI in PANI/PS-PSS copolymer varies from 2.78 to 12.5 wt%. The highest conductivity of PANI/PS-PSS pellets is 1.7 S/cm.