Fabrication of composites by developing simple techniques can be an effective way to modify some properties of individual materials. The present study relates to facile synthesis of sodium nitrate (NaNO3) and potassium nitrate (KNO3) contaminated polyaniline (PANI) and poly (ethylene oxide) (PEO) composites without using any additives, plasticizers, or fibers. The physic-chemical and rheological properties of synthesized composites were analyzed. The composites showed enhancement in both storage and loss modules in comparison with the polymer matrices. The dynamic viscosity of the synthesized materials has inverse relation with that of temperature and shear stress. Rheological analysis reveals a continuous drop off in viscosity by increasing shear stress. The flow behavior was affected little by temperature. However, the overall results showed a shear thinning effect suggesting that polymer composites show non-Newtonian behavior. The addition of NaNO3 and KNO3 had a profound effect on shear viscosity of the materials, although the overall shear thinning behavior prevails. The PANI-PEO composite follows, as the first approximation models, both Bingham and modified Bingham models, while the salt contaminated system follows only the Bingham model. Both show shear stress values. The greater values of storage (G') and loss (G″) modulus of composites than PANI-PEO blend suggests excellent elasticity, better stiffness, and good mechanical strength of the composites. Furthermore, the composites were more thermally stable than pure polymers.
Keywords: KNO3; NaNO3; composite; poly (ethylene oxide); polyaniline; rheology.