Polymer Engineering Faculty Research

Protonation of Polyaniline with Lightly Sulfonated Polystyrene

Robert Weiss, The University of Akron

Abstract

Protonation of polyaniline base with lightly sulfonated polystyrene in polar solvents such as dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and N-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP) was investigated by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy. The isosbestic point clearly shows that quinoid unit and semiquinoid unit are in equilibrium and is a function of the sulfonic acid concentration. The protonation of polyaniline is retarded in NMP compared to DMSO due to prevalent hydrogen bonding.