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Study of sulfonation mechanism of low‐density polyethylene films with fuming sulfuric acid
Author(s) -
Kaneko Masashi,
Kumagai Satoshi,
Nakamura Tatsuo,
Sato Hisaya
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.13404
Subject(s) - low density polyethylene , sulfuric acid , double bond , sulfur trioxide , polymer chemistry , chemistry , x ray photoelectron spectroscopy , infrared spectroscopy , thiourea , sulfur , polyethylene , sulfonic acid , inorganic chemistry , materials science , organic chemistry , chemical engineering , engineering
Sulfonation of low‐density polyethylene (LDPE) films with fuming sulfuric acid was studied by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and attenuated total reflectance (ATR) infrared spectroscopy. The ATR spectra showed the formation of CC double bonds and multiple sulfur atom containing groups for the sulfonation of LDPE films. This led us to propose that the abstraction reaction of hydride ion by sulfur trioxide (SO 3 ) in fuming sulfuric acid might account for the formation of the CC double bonds. It was considered that after the abstraction reaction, these double bonds react with SO 3 , resulting in the production of alkene sulfonic acids and sultones, along with the formation of sulfate groups as a result of reaction of the double bonds with sulfuric acid. Experimental data by treatment of the sulfonated LDPE films with KOH and thiourea supported the proposed idea, estimating the approximate molar ratio of the products. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 2435–2442, 2004