Issue 30, 2014

Electrically pressure sensitive poly(vinylidene fluoride)/polypyrrole electrospun mats

Abstract

Non-woven mats with highly pressure-sensitive electrical conductivity have been prepared by electrospinning of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) containing up to 23 wt% of polypyrrole (PPy) particles synthesized by using dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid (DBSA) as a dopant. The obtained mats have been characterized by dynamic mechanical thermal analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and nitrogen adsorption BET. Electrical resistivity changes of PVDF/PPy blends were investigated during loading–unloading compressive cycles. It has been observed that the electrical resistivity varies reversibly with the applied compressive stress. The maximum sensitivity was obtained for a PVDF/PPy blend containing 13 wt% of PPy, manifesting an electrical resistivity drop of 10 orders of magnitude, i.e. from 1017 to 107 Ω cm upon application of a compressive stress of 5 MPa. This peculiar response can be attributed to the formation of stress-induced conducting pathways in the electrospun network. Considering the remarkable resistivity change and the reproducibility of the phenomenon after repeated loading–unloading cycles, this mat may find application as a pressure sensor.

Graphical abstract: Electrically pressure sensitive poly(vinylidene fluoride)/polypyrrole electrospun mats

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
06 Feb 2014
Accepted
14 Mar 2014
First published
17 Mar 2014

RSC Adv., 2014,4, 15749-15758

Author version available

Electrically pressure sensitive poly(vinylidene fluoride)/polypyrrole electrospun mats

C. Merlini, G. M. O. Barra, T. Medeiros Araujo and A. Pegoretti, RSC Adv., 2014, 4, 15749 DOI: 10.1039/C4RA01058B

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