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Catalytic Synthesis and Characterization of Biodegradable ...

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1.5.1.4 Polyaniline (PANi)<br />

- 21 -<br />

Polymerization <strong>and</strong> Applications <strong>of</strong> <strong>Biodegradable</strong> Polyesters<br />

Polyaniline is an intrinsically conducting polymer consisting <strong>of</strong> phenyldiamine <strong>and</strong><br />

quinodiimine units, the general formula can be shown as Figure 1.5.2. Polyaniline is widely<br />

studied due to its ease <strong>of</strong> synthesis, environmental stability, <strong>and</strong> simple doping/dedoping<br />

chemistry. The synthesis approaches <strong>of</strong> PANi were various but the most common method was<br />

based on mixing aqueous solutions <strong>of</strong> aniline hydrochloride <strong>and</strong> ammonium peroxydisulfate<br />

at room temperature, followed by the separation <strong>of</strong> PANi hydrochloride precipitate by<br />

filtration <strong>and</strong> drying. 111 Electrochemical synthesis is also a common alternative for preparing<br />

PANi, particularly because this synthetic procedure is relatively straightforward. It was found<br />

that the structure <strong>of</strong> PANi <strong>and</strong> its physical <strong>and</strong> chemical properties strongly dependent on<br />

their preparation <strong>and</strong> doping methods. Therefore, to explore new synthesis <strong>and</strong> doping<br />

method is necessary to exp<strong>and</strong> the application extent <strong>of</strong> PANi. In recent years, a number <strong>of</strong><br />

novel polymerization methods were developed, such as emulsion polymerization,<br />

microemulsion polymerization <strong>and</strong> template polymerization. 112<br />

Figure 1.5.2 Structure <strong>of</strong> polyaniline.<br />

1.5.2 Electroactive Polymers for Biomedical Applications<br />

Electroactive polymers have been widely applied in the microelectronics industry,<br />

including battery technology, light emitting, diodes photovoltaic devices, <strong>and</strong> electrochromic<br />

displays. 113 Based on the concept that cellular activities can be influenced by electricity,<br />

electroactive polymers were found to be unique in modulating <strong>of</strong> the cell adhesion, migration,<br />

DNA synthesis, <strong>and</strong> protein secretion. 114-118 Most <strong>of</strong> the researches focused on the tissues or<br />

cells which respond to electrical impulses, including nerve, muscle, bone, <strong>and</strong> cardiac cells.<br />

Besides the ability <strong>of</strong> transferring charge from a biochemical reaction, most <strong>of</strong> electroactive<br />

polymers such as PPy <strong>and</strong> PT are biocompatible, which is an important property <strong>of</strong><br />

biomaterials. These unique characteristics made them useful in many biomedical applications,<br />

such as tissue engineering materials, biosensors, drug delivery devices <strong>and</strong> bioactuators.

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