Permeability improvements of electropolymerized polypyrrole films using dissolvable nano-CaCO3 particle templates

Phys Chem Chem Phys. 2014 Mar 21;16(11):5052-5. doi: 10.1039/c3cp55100h.

Abstract

The electropolymerisation of N-substituted pyrroles on a dissolvable calcium carbonate nanoparticle template was investigated in order to improve the film permeabilities in aqueous solution. After deposition of CaCO3 nanoparticles on the electrode surface, poly(pyrrole-ammonium) or poly(pyrrole-NTA) (NTA: nitrilotriacetic acid) were electrogenerated around the template structures of the electrodes using potentiostatic methods. The dissolution of nanoparticles in acidic medium leads to the formation of nano-porous structures increasing, therefore, the polypyrrole permeability in aqueous solutions. Histidine-tagged glucose oxidase, chosen as an enzyme model, was immobilised on the modified polypyrrole-NTA via the NTA-Cu(2+)-histidine interactions to validate the proposed method. The described setup led to a twofold increase in the maximum current density from 5 to 10 μA cm(-2) after template dissolution.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Calcium Carbonate / chemistry*
  • Calibration
  • Electrochemical Techniques
  • Microscopy, Confocal
  • Nanoparticles*
  • Permeability
  • Polymerization
  • Polymers / chemistry*
  • Pyrroles / chemistry*

Substances

  • Polymers
  • Pyrroles
  • polypyrrole
  • Calcium Carbonate