Preparation and Characterization of Functionalized Polypropylene with Acrylamide and Itaconic Acid

Functionalized polypropylene with acryl amide (AAm) and itaconic acid (IA) were prepared in the molten state in the presence of dicumyl peroxide. The effects of the concentration of both mono- mers on the degree of functionalization and properties of the products were investigated by FT-IR, contact angle measurement and DSC analysis. It was found that the degree of functionalization depends on the initial concentration of both monomers that used in the reaction. The influence of the AAm and IA content on the melting and crystallization temperature of PP was investigated by DSC. The contact angle of water on film surfaces of the functionalized PP (PP-g-AAm and PP-g-IA) decreased with increasing modified polymer content. From FT-IR spectra of functionalized PP a calculation was made of carbonyl index on the films surfaces. It was found that the higher intensity of the carbonyl index, the lower contact angle value and the lower crystallinity confirmed the ex- istence of functionalized AAm and/or IA in PP. It was concluded from the different characteriza- tion methods that the polarity and percentage of functionalized PP were increased up to 3 phr for both monomers, and then it was decreased by increasing the amount of monomers and had a threshold value, due to nucleating agents of monomers in PP.