Electroactive Nanofibers of Poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate-graft-aniline) Copolymers and Their Blends with Polycaprolactone

Copolymers of poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate)-graft-polyaniline (PHEMA-g-PANI) were synthesized by atom-transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate using polyaniline macro-initiators. The macro-initiators were synthesized by the reaction of amine nitrogens of polyaniline with chloroacetyl choloride. The obtained polymers were characterized by FT-IR and 1H NMR spectroscopies. Uniform nanofibers consisting of blends of PHEMA-g-PANI copolymers and polycaprolactone (PCL) were prepared using an electrospinning technique. SEM was used to investigate the morphology of nanofibers produced from PHEMA-g-PANI copolymers and PCL blends. The cyclic voltammetry measurement of blends confirmed the preparation of electroactive nanofibers.