Polypyrrole nanotubes exhibit conductivity of tens S cm⁻¹ which is one of the highest among the current conducting polymers.

This article presents a contribution to better understanding of the processes which take place during the synthesis of polypyrrole nanotubes using a structure-guiding agent, methyl orange. Polypyrrole was prepared by oxidation of pyrrole monomer with iron(III) chloride. In the presence of methyl orange, the formation of nanotubes was observed instead of the globular morphology. Two reaction schemes with reversed additions of oxidant and monomer have been tested and they show remarkable influence on the produced morphology. Nanotubes with circular or rectangular profiles and diameters from tens to hundreds of nanometres have been obtained. FTIR and Raman spectra were used to assess the molecular structure of polypyrrole and detect residual methyl orange in the samples. The conductivity of nanotubes compressed into pellets was as high as 68 S cm⁻¹. The mechanism of nanotubular formation starting at the nucleus produced with the participation of organic dye is proposed. The growth of a nanotube, however, proceeds in the absence of a template. An alternative mechanism for the formation of nanotubes, the coating of solid templates with a polypyrrole overlayer, is also discussed.

A simple route was employed for the fabrication of a polyaniline (PANI)–chitosan (CS)–magnetite (Fe₃O₄) nanocomposite (PANI–CS–Fe₃O₄) via the in situ polymerization of aniline in the presence of CS using anhydrous iron(III) chloride as an oxidizing agent. The magnetic character of the nanocomposite results from the presence of iron oxide nanoparticles, which were formed as side products during the synthesis of the PANI–CS nanocomposite. The synthesized PANI–CS–Fe₃O₄ nanocomposite was fully characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM). The reduction of silver nitrate by the synthesized nanocomposite enables the anchoring of silver (Ag) nanoparticles onto its surface. The catalytic properties of the Ag-decorated nanocomposite (Ag@PANI–CS–Fe₃O₄) toward the reduction of 4-nitrophenol was investigated using sodium borohydride as a reducing agent.

Polypyrrole (PPy) in globular form and as nanotubes were prepared by the oxidation of pyrrole with iron(III) chloride in the absence and presence of methyl orange, respectively. They were subsequently converted to nitrogen-containing carbons at 650 °C in an inert atmosphere. The course of carbonization was followed by thermogravimetric analysis and the accompanying changes in molecular structure by Fourier Transform Infrared and Raman spectroscopies. Both the original and carbonized materials have been tested in sensing of polar and non-polar organic vapors. The resistivity of sensing element using globular PPy was too high and only nanotubular PPy could be used. The sensitivity of the PPy nanotubes to ethanol vapors was nearly on the same level as that of their carbonized analogs (i.e., ~18% and 24%, respectively). Surprisingly, there was a high sensitivity of PPy nanotubes to the n-heptane vapors (~110%), while that of their carbonized analog remained at ~20%. The recovery process was significantly faster for carbonized PPy nanotubes (in order of seconds) compared with 10 s of seconds for original nanotubes, respectively, due to higher specific surface area after carbonization.