Fabrication of Polyaniline Nanoparticles via the co-Assembly of Macromolecules

The amphiphlic random copolymer P(AA-co-VP-co-St) was synthesized by free radical polymerization of acrylic acid (AA),N-vinyl pyrrolidone (VP) and styrene (St).Driven by the hydrophobic effect and the electrostatic interaction,P(AA-co-VP-co-St) and PANI could be co-assembled into uniformly dispersed PANI nanoparticles.The co-assembly behaviors between P(AA-co-VP-co-St) and PANI in aqueous solution were studied using transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering.The influences of AA mole fraction on the size and morphology of the obtained PANI nanoparticles were systematically studied.Results showed that the minimum size of PANI nanoparticles was obtained at AA mole fraction of 30%.