Preparation and characterization of graphene composites with conducting polymers

We report a new route for preparing electro-conductive composites based on reduced graphene oxide (RG-O) and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT). The composites were prepared by in situ polymerization of EDOT in aqueous mixture containing RG-O platelets modified with poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSS). In the synthetic process, PSS molecules stabilize RG-O in the aqueous phase and function as a polymerization template to hybridize PEDOT chains along RG-O platelets. Compared with the RG-O platelets, the resulting composites show an enhanced electrical conductivity of 9.2 S cm-1 with good thermal stability. Copyright (C) 2011 Society of Chemical Industry