H 2 O 2 ‐induced graft polymerization of acrylic acid/styrene mixtures on poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers

Graft polymerization of acrylic acid/styrene mixtures on poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers using H 2 O 2 as initiator was investigated under different conditions including acrylic acid/styrene ratio, monomer mixtures concentration, initiator concentration, polymerization temperature, pH of polymerization medium, addition of metallic salts, and use of solvent/water mixture instead of aqueous medium. It was found that the rate and extent of grafting for acrylic acid/styrene mixtures were much higher than those of single monomers, indicating a synergestic effect. Maximum percent grafting occurred when acrylic acid/styrene mixture at a ratio of 30:70 was used. Increasing the monomer mixture concentration from 2% to 40% was accompanied by a significant enhancement in percent grafting. The latter increased also significantly as the H 2 O 2 concentration increased from 10 to 150 meq/L; a further increase in H 2 O 2 concentration decreased grafting. No grafting took place at 65°C even after 4 h. Raising the polymerization temperature to 75°C expedited grafting; the magnitude of the latter increased by increasing the temperature up to 95°C. Addition of copper sulphate and ferrous ammonium sulphate to the polymerization system offset grafting, the opposite holds true for lithium chloride provided that its concentration does not exceed 15 mmole/L. Methyl alchol/water mixture (20:80) constituted the optimal medium for polymerization. Grafting of acrylic acid/styrene mixtures to poly(ethylene terephtalate) fibers resulted in considerable improvement in moisture regain of the latter.