Preparation and Electrorheological Behavior of Polyaniline‐Modified Tio ₂ Cubic‐like Hollow Nanoparticles

The objective is to examine the preparation of electrorheological (ER) fluids, specifically polyaniline (PANI)‐modified cubic hollow titanium oxide (TiO 2 ) nanoparticles. The obtained TiO 2 /PANI ER material exhibits distinct morphological characteristics, being both hollow structure and cubic shape, which is useful to enhance the ER properties. The initial step is designed to produce cubic‐like titanium fluoride by the first hydrothermal reaction, and then a hollow cubic titanium oxide is obtained in a second hydrothermal etching. Subsequently, PANI‐modified cubic hollow TiO 2 nanoparticles are prepared by the in situ polymerization method. The morphology of the obtained TiO 2 /PANI samples are observed by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy images. The X‐ray diffraction spectra demonstrate the existence of diffraction peaks that are consistent with those observed in amorphous PANI. The composition of element analysis and the chemical structure of the TiO 2 /PANI nanoparticles are examined through the utilization of X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy, respectively. Furthermore, the ER and dielectric properties of the samples are investigated. When 6 mL of aniline is added, the yield stress of the TiO 2 /PANI sample obtained is 103.8 Pa at E = 3 kV mm and shear rate 0.1 s −1 , whereas its ER efficiency can be up to 647.75.