Synthesis, characterization, and evaluation of natural rubber‐graft‐N‐(4‐aminodiphenyl methane) acrylamide as an antioxidant

The synthesis of N‐(4‐aminodiphenylmethane) acrylamide (ADPMA) was performed through the reaction of 4,4′‐diaminodiphenyl methane and acryloyl chloride in the presence of triethyl amine. The grafting of ADPMA onto natural rubber was executed with UV radiation. Benzoyl peroxide was used to initiate the free‐radical grafting copolymerization. Natural rubber‐graft‐N‐(4‐aminodiphenyl methane) acrylamide (NR‐g‐ADPMA) was characterized with an IR technique. We studied the effect of aging on the mechanical properties and the swelling and extraction phenomena for acrylonitrile–butadiene copolymer (NBR) vulcanizates, which contained the prepared NR‐g‐ADPMA and a commercial antioxidant, N‐isopropyl‐N′‐phenyl‐p‐phenylenediamine. The prepared antioxidant enhanced both the mechanical properties of the NBR vulcanizates and the permanence of the ingredients in these vulcanizates.