title: Interfacial Synthesis of Gold-Polyaniline Nanocomposite and Its Electrocatalytic Application.
abstract: Gold-polyaniline (Au-PANI) nanocomposite was prepared using a simple interfacial polymerization method, performed in an immiscible water/toluene biphasic system using tetrachloroaurate, AuCl4(-) as an oxidant. The formation of Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) or Au-PANI nanocomposite can be controlled to a certain degree by varying the ratio of initial Au(+) and aniline concentrations. Under optimal condition (HAuCl4/aniline ratio is 1:2), green dispersion of Au-PANI nanocomposite is produced in aqueous phase, whose morphology, structure and physicochemical properties are investigated in details. The nanocomposite shows granular morphology with mostly rodlike AuNPs embedded in polymer. It was found that polyaniline in the composite is in the conducting emeraldine salt form, containing high amount of Au (28.85 wt %). Furthermore, the electrical conductivity of the nanocomposite was found to be four-fold higher than that of the polymer itself. In addition, the nanocomposite powder, isolated from the as-prepared aqueous dispersion, can later be easily redispersed in water and further used for various applications. Moreover, the obtained Au-PANI nanocomposite showed excellent electrocatalytic performance toward the electrochemical oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), with high ORR onset potential and good selectivity. This makes it a promising candidate for a new class of Pt-free ORR catalyst.
authors.affiliation: Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences, University of Belgrade , P.O. Box 522, 11001 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Una
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Bogdanović
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Physical Chemistry, University of Belgrade , Studentski Trg 12-16, 11158 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Igor
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pašti
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Physical Chemistry, University of Belgrade , Studentski Trg 12-16, 11158 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Gordana
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ćirić-Marjanović
authors.affiliation: Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences, University of Belgrade , P.O. Box 522, 11001 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Miodrag
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mitrić
authors.affiliation: South Dakota School of Mines and Technology , 501 East Saint Joseph Street, Rapid City, South Dakota 57701, United States.
authors.forename: Scott P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Ahrenkiel
authors.affiliation: Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences, University of Belgrade , P.O. Box 522, 11001 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Vesna
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vodnik
keywords: Au nanoparticles; conductivity; electrocatalyst; nanocomposite; oxygen reduction reaction; polyaniline