a) b - École Polytechnique de Montréal

conductivity at the percolation threshold point is between 10 -11 S cm -1 and 10 -9 S cm -1 . In order to
have higher conductivity values, higher concentrations of PANI are required.
This work reports on the development of onion morphology and multi-percolated morphologies
in HDPE/PS/PMMA/PVDF/PANI blends in which all phases are assembled hierarchically in
order. The overall objective is to lower the percolation threshold conductivity value of PANI to
the lowest possible value. The required thermodynamic conditions to obtain these structures will
be examined. The effect of the number of components, phase composition and the influence of
an interfacial modifier on the conductivity of the blends will be examined.
4.3 Experimental Methods
4.3.1 Materials
Commercial HDPE, PS, PMMA, processable PANI, and flouropolymer(PVDF) were examined
in this work. The main characteristics of the materials used in this study are represented in Table
4-1. Cyclohexane, acetic acid, dimethylformamide(DMF), and chromic acid were used to extract
or dissolve the selected phases.
PANI was purchased from Panipol Ltd, in the form of cylindrical compressed pellets with a
composition of about 25 weight % polyaniline salt and 75 weight % of a zinc compound to
modify its processability. The specific conductivity of this material is about 5 S cm -1 .
102