Intrinsically conducting polymers ICPs applications

Intrinsic conductive polymers (ICP) obtained by polymerization of conductive macromolecules. This is a difficult route for industrial applications. 

Intrinsically conducting polymers (ICPs) are electroactive long-range conjugated polymers. They generally possess reversible redox performance, while metal corrosion is also a redox process therefore, it is possible that ICPs may find application for metal anticorrosion. It is true since the early report for corrosion inhibition performance of ICPs such as polyaniline (PANI) by DeBerry [5]. After more than 20 years of development, now ICPs have received much attention, since th may be a kind of alternative anticorrosion agents instead of the toxic heavy metal in anticorrosion coating, no matter they are used alone or as composite with substrate resin. 

Another approach to EMI screening involves the use of intrinsically conducting polymers (ICP), notably polyaniline and polypyrrole which can form the basis of composite materials whose composition may be tailored to the requirements of the application. Other conducting polymers include polyacetylene, polythiophene and poly-p-phenylene. Advantages of ICP include corrosion resistance, relatively low weight, processability and tunable conductivity. 

One of the main limitations of intrinsically conductive polymers (ICP s) towards their wide application as conductive additives for thermoplastics is their poor thermal-oxidative stability at typical melt processing temperatures (i.e., above 200 °C). On the other hand, the use of high surface area carbon blacks (CB) as conductive additives is limited due to the increased melt viscosity of their blends with thermoplastics. Eeonomers are a new class of thermally stable, chemically neutral, and electrically conductive composites made via in-situ deposition of conductive polyaniline (PANI) or polypyrrole (PPY) on CB substrates. Eeonomer composites are more stable (up to 300 °C) than pure ICP s and more easily processible with thermoplastics than CB. Use of Eeonomers as conductive additives for plastics lead to compounds with improved electrical, mechanical, and processing properties. By varying Ae conductive polymer to CB ratio, it is possible to fine tune the polarity of Eeonomer composites and achieve very low percolation thresholds. This control is possible because of preferred Monomer localization at the 2D phase boundary of the immiscible polymer blends. 

To summarize, the data for 3,4-dimethoxythiophene and 3-alkoxy-4-meth-ylthiophenes were especially very promising with respect to technical usage in high conductivity applications, and the structural prerequisites necessary for the development of such materials seemed to be understood. But this knowledge, which describes the research state of around 1990, did not result in a single technical product on the basis of any 3-alkoxythiophene derivative, whether substituted by a further alkoxy residue or methyl group or not. In particular, intrinsically conductive polymers (ICP) based on the Hoechst AG patents could not be commercialized at all, and Hoechst finished this development. 

The major application area of PE is in packaging and the relevant functional properties are antistatic, antioxidant and antimicrobial, all of which can be highly valuable for these applications. Usually, different additives are incorporated to introduce these new properties into PE. Intrinsically conducting polymers (ICP) are multi-functional polymers that can offer all of these valuable properties. Incorporating ICPs in the PE matrices thus offers the possibility of employing a single additive to achieve antistatic, antioxidant as well as antimicrobial properties. 

I 6 Core-Shell Systems Based on Intrinsically Conductive Polymers and their Coating Applications Table 6.2 Application potential of ICPs. 

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