Characterization of electrochemically synthesized PANI on graphite electrode for potential use in electrochemical power sources

Abstract

Polyaniline (PANI) on graphite electrode was synthesized electrochemically under galvanostatic condition at current density of 2.0 mA cm-2 from aqueous solution of 1.0 mol dm-3 HCl and 0.25 mol dm-3 aniline monomer. Electrochemical characterization of the PANI electrode was performed in 0.5 mol dm-3 HCl using cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic measurements. The overall charge capacity of the PANI electrode was estimated to be 0.154 mAh cm-2, which corresponds to 25% of the theoretical mass of PANI available for doping exchange. It was observed that during initial cyclization at low pH, the extent of PANI degradation products was insignificant and practically had no influence on the charge/discharge characteristics of the PANI electrode.