Graft copolymerization of acrylonitrile on thiolated holocellulose

Graft copolymerization of acrylonitrile monomer initiated by ceric ions on bleached and thiolated holocellulosic materials was studied. The level and efficiency of grafting on the bleached holocellulose were significantly higher than on the thiolated holocellulose. Molecular weight and number of grafted polyacrylonitrile chains were relatively low and were of about the same order of magnitude with both materials. The molecular weights of the homopolymer formed were significantly higher than the values obtained for the grafted copolymer. The results indicate that the formation of graft copolymer chains may not result entirely from radicals generated on the cellulosic substrate.