Facile production of antistatic wool/PANI composite fibers

Abstract

Wool is a significant natural fiber in the textile industry. However, it is easily to generate static electricity. In this paper, PANI/wool composite fibers are prepared through an in-situ adsorption polymerization. The results show that aniline can be preferentially adsorbed on the surface of wool fibers through electrostatic attraction and polymerize therein, so PANI is tightly coated on the surface of the wool fibers. The composite fibers exhibit excellent anti-static properties. Meanwhile, the PANI/wool composite fibers have good washing and abrasion resistance. The electric resistance of the PANI/wool composite fibers is 24.3 MΩ/cm after 200 times of washing and is 14.5 MΩ/cm after 600 times of rubbing, at least 6 orders of magnitude lower than that of the ordinary wool fibers (1.60 × 10⁷ MΩ/cm). In addition, the composite fibers are more comfortable to wear because PANI covers the sharp edges of wool fibers. It is worth noting that the fabrics woven from this kind of anti-static fibers are sensitive to the pH. The color changes of the clothing can be used to judge the acidity of the environment. The method is very simple and easy to mass production. The wool fibers do not need pre-treatment or modification, simplifying the processing steps and reducing the costs. It is very suitable for industrial production of antistatic wool composite fabrics.