Functionalized conductive cellulose through electric field induced interaction of polyaniline and methyl orange dye

Electric field induced interaction of polyaniline (PANI) with Methyl orange (MO) dye has been attempted to functionalize polymer-based electronic materials on flexible cellulose paper substrate. The control of the chemical interaction through applied electric fields is the key objective of this work. Synthesis of PANI on flexible cellulose paper substrates was done through the established vapor-phase polymerization process. The prepared PANI-coated cellulose samples were allowed to undergo interaction with the MO dye solution in the presence of applied electric fields at different bias voltage. The structural, morphological, and compositional analyses, optical and electrical properties of the MO dye-interacted PANI-coated cellulose samples were studied using X-ray diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscopy, UV-vis-NIR spectroscopy, and I-V characteristic measurements. The optical absorbance spectroscopic results were analyzed to obtain the energy band gaps of the samples, and an increase was observed due to MO dye interactions. The electrical I-V measurements indicated that an increase in electrical conductivity due to MO dye interaction was significantly affected by the applied electric fields. The values of the sheet resistances were found to be highly responsive to the applied electric fields during MO dye interaction.