Effect of Blend Preparation on Electrical, Dielectric, and Dynamical‐Mechanical Properties of Conducting Polymer Blend: SBS Triblock Copolymer/Polyaniline

Conducting polymer blends based on styrene–butadiene–styrene (SBS) triblock copolymer and polyaniline doped with dodecylbenzene sulfonic acid (Pani.DBSA) were prepared by different procedures: mechanical mixing (MM) and ‘in situ’ polymerization (ISP) methods. The ISP blends exhibited higher levels of electrical conductivity, as compared to MM blends. The scanning electron micrographs of the ISP blend were characterized by the presence of microtubules, which favored the formation of the conducting pathways inside the SBS matrix. From dynamic mechanical and dielectric analysis, it was possible to suggest a higher interaction degree of the polyaniline with the polystyrene phase of the block copolymer. Blends prepared by ISP method displayed also higher dielectric constant and higher dielectric loss factor than blends prepared by MM method. magnified image