Conducting blends of poly(o-toluidine) and poly(ester)urathane

Poly(o-toluidine) (POT) and poly(ester)urathane (PU) blends, containing different weight fractions of POT were prepared by mixing separate solutions of the two polymers of known concentrations in tetrahydrofuran (THF). Films of PU and POT-PU blends were obtained by casting the polymer solution in glass petri dish and by solvent evaporation. Films of PU and POT-PU blends so prepared were characterized spectroscopically, employing FTIR spectroscopy, thermally by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), morphologically employing scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and also mechanically. Spectroscopic and thermal studies of the blends indicate some degrees of physico-chemical interactions between the constituent polymers via H-bonding. dc electrical conductivities in S/cm of HCl-doped POT, POT-PU blends and PU are 8.4 x 10(-1), 3.7 x 10(-3) and about (0.8 - 1.5) x 10(-15), respectively. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.