Synthesis of poly(o-phenylenediamine) hollow spheres and nanofibers using different oxidizing agents

Abstract Poly( o -phenylenediamine) (P o PD) hollow spheres ( ca. 800 nm in outer diameter) were synthesized by a simple solution route using ammonium persulfate (APS) as the oxidizing agent, whereas P o PD nanofibers (0.5–2 μm in width and more than 100 μm in length) and gold nanoparticles (200–500 nm) were obtained when changing the oxidizing agent of APS to chlorauric acid (HAuCl 4 ). The chemical structures of P o PD hollow spheres and nanofibers were characterized by FTIR and XRD spectra. When using HAuCl 4 as the oxidizing agent, the products of P o PD nanofibers and gold nanoparticles could be separated by chemical methods. The monomer droplets were proposed to act as template to the formation of polymer hollow spheres while the oriented growth of polymer nanofibers might be catalyzed by gold nanoparticles.