Vapor phase polymerization of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene on flexible substrate and its application on heat generation

An oxidative chemical vapor phase polymerization process is applied to coat flexible polyethylene terephthalate ( PET) fabrics with a uniform poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) film. This vapor phase polymerization method is a solventfree technique, which could yield a low resistance in the PEDOT-coated PET fabric. The resistance as low as 52 Omega square(-1) is achieved. The polymerization conditions, such as the concentration of oxidant, reaction time, and temperature, have been systematically investigated. The coated fabric samples exhibit an increase in temperature when subjected to a fixed DC voltage. This result indicates a potential application of these PEDOT-coated fabrics as electric heating materials. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.