The Electrical Conductivity of Stretched Polyaniline and Polypyrrole Coated Yarns

Document Type : Research Paper

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Abstract

The nylon and nylon/lycra yarns were coated with electrically conductive polymers such as polyaniline and polypyrrole, via chemical polymerization process. Electrical conductivity of the coated yarns was measured at various
strain levels using two-point probe technique and their strain sensitivities were studied. The results showed that, electrical conductivity of the coated yarns decreased with an increase in strain level. A sharp decrease in the electrical conductivity of the nylon/lycra coated yarn with the strain level was recorded whereas, a small drop in the electrical conductivity of the nylon coated yarn was observed. Linear relationships were found between the electrical conductivity and length for the nylon and nylon/lycra coated yarns. The polyaniline coated yarns showed higher strain sensitivity compared to polypyrrole coated yarns. Repeatability of the strain sensitivity of the coated yarns was examined and the coated nylon/lycra yarn showed better repeatability compared to that of coated nylon yarn. The coated yarns were proposed as a flexible strain sensor in the field of intelligent materials.

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