| Abstract: | ![]()
Polystyrene (PS) possesses good mechanical properties, but its surface is relatively inert and hydrophobic. Grafting of N‐vinylcarboxamido‐2‐methylpropane sulfonic acid (VCMP) is useful to hydrophilize the PS surface. Grafting was performed using benzoyl peroxide (BPO) as an initiator in toluene:methanol solvent mixture (3:1 volume ratio). The influence of the main factors on grafting, such as temperature, time, concentrations of initiator, PS and VCMP, has been studied. The results show that the initial rate of polymerization and percentage of grafting are enhanced by increased temperature. Furthermore, the specific rate constants of the first order reaction/are determined, and the activation energy of the grafting reaction is estimated. The grafting parameters are established and a suitable mechanism of the reaction is proposed. The grafted PS is to characterized through infrared spectra, intrinsic viscosity, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential gravimetric analysis (DTG). The kinetics of thermal degradation and the order of the thermal stabilities are given. Also the decomposition activation energies of the thermal degradation are determined, and confirm the thermal stabilities of the polymers used. © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry |
