Fabrication of conductive and flame-retardant bifunctional cotton fabric by polymerizing pyrrole and doping phytic acid

The electrically conductive and flame-retardant bifunctional cotton fabrics were fabricated by polymerizing pyrrole (Py) onto the cotton fabrics and followed by doping phytic acid (PA) via a chemical oxidation method. The prepared cotton fabrics were then characterized by Four-point Probes Resistivity Measurement, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Vertical Burning Test and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). The results of SEM and FTIR tests indicated that pyrrole was successfully polymerized on the cotton fabrics. The EDS measurements showed that the phosphorus increased with increasing phytic acid concentration. The results of four-point probes resistivity measurement, vertical burning test and TGA test exhibited that both the electrical conductivity and the Limit Oxygen Index (LOI) of the treated fabrics increase with increasing phytic acid concentration. The LOI of the cotton fabric increased from 18% to 37.6% after the cotton fabric was deposited with polypyrrole and doped with phytic acid. The conductivity of the treated cotton fabrics is mainly affected by the pyrrole concentration and can reach about 0.28 S cm⁻¹.