Conducting polymer-based technologies

Sensor technologies are developed using principles of physical and chemical sciences and their interrelationships. Some examples are fiber-optic-based, semiconductor-based, conducting polymer-based, mechanical, electrochemical, calorimetric, and colorimetric sensors. In this section these sensor technologies are discussed with respect to their functions, advantages, capabilities, and requirements. 

Pt-based catalysts are two necessary approaches at the current technology stage. It is believed that non-noble metal electrocatalysts is probably the sustainable solution for PEM fuel cell commercialization. In the past several decades, various nonnoble metal catalysts for ORR have been explored, including non-pyrolyzed and pyrolyzed transition metal nitrogen-containing complexes, transition metal chalcogenides, conductive polymer-based catalysts, metal oxides/carbides/nitrides/ oxynitrides/carbonitrides, and enzymatic compoimds. The major effort in non-noble metal electrocatalysts for ORR is to increase both the catalytic activity and stability. 

Recent advances in carbon nanotnbe technology inclnde the incorporation of carbon nanotubes into a number of conducting polymer-based biosensors. For example, preliminary studies have been performed exploring the properties of both polypyrrole-carbon nanotube and polyaniline-carbon nanotnbe devices as pH sensors [114], One application used deoxyribonucleic acid-doped polypyrrole in conjunction with carbon nanotubes for detection of deoxyribonucleic acid. 

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The book has been written by those experienced researchers in the field of polymer nanocomposites who themselves helped develop the promising latex-based concept for efficiently dispersing CNTs into thermoplastic polymers, rendering conductive polymer materials. The three authors, all currently or formerly employed by the Laboratory of Polymer Chemistry at the Eindhoven University of Technology, the Netherlands, have published around 2 0 well-received scientific papers on conductive polymer-based CNT composites. 

Conducting polymer composite materials (CPCM) — artificial media based on polymers and conductive fillers, have been known since the early 1940s and widely used in various branches of science and technology. Their properties are described in a considerable number of monographs and articles [1-12]. However, the publications available do not clearly distinguish such materials from other composites and do not provide for specific features of their formation. 

Given the actual scenario, one can state that the emerging field of nanotechnology represents new effort to exploit new materials as well as new technologies in the development of efficient and low-cost solar cells. In fact, the technological capabilities to manipulate matter under controlled conditions in order to assemble complex supramolecular structures within the range of 100 nm could lead to innovative devices (nano-devices) based on unconventional photovoltaic materials, namely, conducting polymers, fuUerenes, biopolymers (photosensitive proteins), and related composites. 

Electronically conducting polymers (ECPs) such as polyaniline (PANI), polypyrrole (PPy) and po 1 y(3.4-cthy 1 cncdi oxyth iophcnc) (PEDOT) have been applied in supercapacitors, due to their excellent electrochemical properties and lower cost than other ECPs. We demonstrated that multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) prepared by catalytic decomposition of acetylene in a solid solution are very effective conductivity additives in composite materials based on ECPs. In this paper, we show that a successful application of ECPs in supercapacitor technologies could be possible only in an asymmetric configuration, i.e. with electrodes of different nature. 

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