Functionalised hybrid materials of conducting polymers with individual fibres of cellulose

Polypyrrole and polyaniline conducting polymer composites with individual fibres of cellulose have been successfully prepared and characterised. For this, individual Kraft paper pulp fibres have been fully encapsulated with polypyrrole and polyaniline by direct polymerisation of the respective monomers using ferric chloride and ammonium persulfate as the oxidants. These novel conducting polymer/cellulose fibre composite materials exhibit the inherent properties of both components. They include the electrical and chemical properties of polypyrrole and polyaniline and the strength, flexibility and available surface areas of the cellulose fibre. This allows for interesting opportunities for the development of new added-value products in the paper and packaging industries. Additionally, by utilising the redox active surface of the fibre's polymer coating, silver ions have been reduced to silver metal, thereby producing cellulose/conducting polymer/silver composites. Silver and its compounds have long been identified for their bactericidal effects and thus antimicrobial properties are imparted to the hybrid materials. This gives rise to applications requiring the inhibition of microbial growth. The chemical and physical characterisation of such products has been carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), cyclic voltammetry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and electrical conductivity measurements, and additionally the testing of their antimicrobial activity. ((c) Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2007).