Terpolymers of acrylamide,acrylic acid and acrylonitrile: further characterization and biodegradation studies

Tercopolymers of acrylamide (AM), acrylic acid (AA) and acrylonitrile (AN) synthesized by free radical solution polymerization have been characterized using ¹³C NMR and thermal analysis (DSC) techniques. Incorporation of the above three monomers was confirmed by ¹³C NMR analysis. The tercopolymers have similar polymer backbone structures, and a limited branching in the main chain was found as evidenced by DSC analysis. Microbiological observations of polymer‐dependent growth and of respiration studies using a soil bacterial isolate, suggested that these tercopolymers were used as growth substrate and were therefore biodegradable. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry