Abstract—In the present work polyindole based nickel-zinc oxide nanocomposite was prepared. Here nickel-zinc oxide was prepared separately in presence of capping agent using well known co-precipitation method. Polyindole based nickel-zinc oxide nanocomposite was prepared using chemical oxidation method. Polyindole and nickel-zinc oxide was also prepared separately to compare their properties with their counterparts. The samples have been analysed using SEM, FTIR, XRD techniques. Polyindole showed a cauliflower like pattern in SEM picture and the surface morphology was changed entirely in the case of nanocomposite. FTIR showed the vibration bands of both polyindole and nickel- zinc oxide in the nanocomposite. From the XRD spectrum the particle size was calculated using Scherrer’s equation. The dielectric properties of these materials were studied and the dependence of dielectric constant and a.c conductivity with frequency of these samples were analysed. Antifungal activity of the nanocomposite and their counterparts were studied separately on the fungi Penicillium Chrysogenum. The nanocomposite showed activity of 1 cm, nickel – zinc oxide showed 0.7 cm activity, whereas polyindole, nickel oxide and zinc oxide showed no activity.
Index Terms—Chemical co-precipitation, chemical oxidation, conducting polymer, nanocomposite, polyindole.
The authors are with Nanoscience Research Laboratory, Department of Physics, Sree Narayana College, Kollam, Kerala, India (email: dedhila@yahoo.com).
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Cite:Dedhila Devadathan and R. Raveendran, "Polyindole Based Nickel-Zinc Oxide Nanocomposite – Characterization and Antifungal Studies," International Journal of Chemical Engineering and Applications vol. 5, no. 3 pp. 240-243, 2014.
