University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Early history of polypyrrole: The first conducting organic polymer

Rasmussen, Seth C.

Content Files
bhc2015v040p045.pdf

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/127915

Description

Title
Early history of polypyrrole: The first conducting organic polymer
Author(s)
Rasmussen, Seth C.
Issue Date
2015-03-15
Keyword(s)
  • History
  • Chemistry
Abstract
The discovery that the conductivity of conjugated organic polymers can be controlled via redox processes has led to materials that combine the electronic properties of inorganic semiconductors with the weight and density of plastics. As such, these materials have been studied extensively and their importance recognized with the awarding of the 2000 Nobel Prize in chemistry to Alan Heeger, Alan MacDiarmid, and Hideki Shirakawa. This award stemmed from their work on conducting polyacetylene via doping with oxidants, which they carried out in the late 1970s. While these studies produced the most dramatic results, investigations of conjugated polymeric materials date back to the early 1960s, with the first organic polymer of significant conductivity being polypyrrole as reported by Donald Weiss and coworkers in Australia. The development of polypyrrole materials will be presented beginning with the first report of pyrrole's polymerization in 1922 through the more well-known work of Diaz and coworkers in 1979.
Publisher
Division of the History of Chemistry
ISSN
1053-4385
Type of Resource
text
Genre of Resource
article
Language
eng
Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/2142/127915
DOI
https://doi.org/10.70359/bhc2015v040p045
Copyright and License Information
Copyright 2015 Division of the History of Chemistry

Owning Collections

Bulletin for the History of Chemistry: Volume 40, Number 1, 2015 PRIMARY