Synthesis and characterization on ATP/TiO2/PANI core-shell nanocomposites

Conducting attapulgite/titania/polyaniline/ (ATP/TiO2/PANI) core-shell nanocomposites (CSNs) were synthesized via oxidative polymerization of aniline after the surface modification of the ATP carried with TiO2 nanoparticles. The structure and morphology of the ATP/TiO2/PANI CSNs were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and fourier transform infrared. The thermal stability of the ATP/TiO2/PANI CSNs was also investigated by thermal analyzer. The results show that the ATP/TiO2/PANI CSNs display "capsule like" core-shell structure, of which ranging in diameter of about 80 nm and length of about 250 nm. In addition, the ATP/TiO2/PANI CSNs present a higher degree of crystallization and better thermal stability. We believe that the excellent core-shell structure and better thermal stability should be prone to improve their other properties and enlarge their application.