Composite electrode materials based on conducting polymers - Summary –

INTRODUCTION The research made in this PhD thesis fits the current trend in the development of new advanced composite electrode materials with high performance and parameters. The composite materials has new physical and chemical properties that are not present in its components taken individually. The new electrode materials were obtained by combination of conducting polymers, such as polypyrrole and/or functionalized polypyrrole with inorganic materials like zeolites or carbon nanotubes and the study presents fundamental interest of new physical processes and phenomena induced by the nanostructuring of conducting polymers, interface effects, specific interactions between components, and application for a variety of interest areas: actuators, electronic devices, chemical sensors, biosensors. The main objective of this Phd thesis is obtaining new modified electrodes architectures, using as substrate arts materials such as polymers like polypyrrole and functionalized polypyrrole and development of new composite electrode material using inorganic modification agents such as zeolites or carbon nanotubes. Complex physical and chemical characterization of the as obtained electrode materials, allowed a better understanding of the properties of this materials, offering a wide perspective of applications in various fields, especially in bioelectroanalytical chemistry. In the first part of this work, a bibliographic study of the modified electrodes area was made, using as substrate simple or composite polymeric materials and modified inorganic agents, such as zeolites and carbon nanotubes. The second part, the original contributions are divided into three chapters, describing the synthesis and characterization of modified electrodes: (i) Micro and nanostructured polymeric electrode materials based on polypyrrole. In this chapterare are described the preparation methods of new modified electrode based on polymeric materials using simple or functionalized layers of polypyrrole. After obtaining these new materials, physical and chemical characterization was performed using modern techniques such FTIR spectroscopy, scanning and tunneling electron microscopy. Also, the as prepared materials were characterized in electrical, electrochemical and catalytic terms. (ii) Polymeric composite electrode materials based on polypyrrole In order to improve the electrochemical characteristics of modified electrodes, in this chapter were prepared new composite electrode materials, by associating of organic conducting polymeric layers such as micro and nanostructures polypyrrole with inorganic nanostructures like zeolites and carbon nanotubes. The as prepared materials were characterized in physical and chemical terms. (iii) Composite electrode materials based on carbon paste In this chapter were obtained new modified electrode using common materials such as carbon paste in combination with inorganic micro and nanostructures such zeolites and carbon …