Poly(2-aminobiphenyl), preparation, characterization, mechanism, and kinetics of the electropolymerization process

Electropolymerization of 2-aminobiphenyl was carried out on glassy carbon, gold, and platinum electrodes, in aqueousorganic solvent mixtures, using a potentiodynamic technique. The choice of organic solvent strongly influences the film formation. In a mixture of 60% acetonitrile and 40% 1.0M HClO4, stable films were obtained. The poly(2-aminobiphenyl) films were characterized with cyclic voltammetry, where the electrochemical activity of the formed polymer films was investigated in acidic and neutral aqueous solutions containing perchlorates or in potassium ferrocyanide. The prepared films posses a remarkable stability in acidic aqueous solutions and are also stable in some organic solvents. The stability of the polymer films depends on the pH of the solution, and the mechanism of the polymerization process involves deprotonation and head-to-tail coupling of oxidized monomers with its oligomeric radical cations. The kinetics of the electropolymerization process was investigated by determining the charge consumed during the electropolymerization as a function of time at different concentrations of the electrolyte components. The electropolymerization process follows first-order kinetics with respect to the monomer and negative order with respect to HClO4. (C) 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012