| Abstract: | Tussah silk fibroin was chemically modified by acylation with aliphatic, aromatic, and hydrophobic acid anhydrides. The tussah silk fibers were pretreated by immersing them in a lithium thiocyanate (LiSCN) solution and then acylated in dimethylformamide (DMF) at elevated temperatures. Using this method, acylated tussah silk fibers with weight gains of 8–22% could be obtained. The pretreatment with LiSCN was necessary to promote the acylation. Without it, the reaction did not proceed. The optimum temperature and reaction time of the pretreatment was 55°C and 60 min, respectively. When examining the physical properties and the thermal behavior of both pretreated and acylated tussah silk, it was found that the mechanical properties and the position of the major DSC endothermic peak remained unchanged, regardless of pretreatment and acylation. The moisture regain of the pretreated tussah silk increased slightly while the moisture regain of the acylated silk decreased linearly with increasing weight gain. The chemical modification allows for a wide control of the tussah silk fiber's properties, making it possible to use tussah silk for the development and production of novel textile and biomaterials. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 78: 382–391, 2000 |
