Chlorohydrin water swellable rubber compatibilized by an amphiphilic graft copolymer. I. Synthesis and characterization of compatibilizer PVA-g-PBA

The graft copolymerization of butyl acrylate onto poly(vinyl alcohol) with ceric ammonium nitrate as redox initiator in a aqueous medium has been investigated. The formation of graft copolymer was confirmed by means of IR, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). The percentage of mononer conversion and percentage of grafting varied with concentrations of initiator, nitric acid, monomer, macromolecular backbone (Xn = 1750, M = 80 000), reaction temperature and reaction time. Some inorganic salts and organic solvents have a great influence upon grafting. The reaction mechanism has been explored, and rate equations for the reaction are established.