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A novel route for the synthesis of poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) grafted TiO 2 nanoparticles via surface thiol‐lactam initiated radical polymerization
Author(s) -
Bach Long Giang,
Islam Md. Rafiqul,
Seo Sung Yong,
Lim Kwon Taek
Publication year - 2012
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.37879
Subject(s) - surface modification , materials science , methacrylate , dispersity , nanoparticle , polymerization , polymer chemistry , nanocomposite , radical polymerization , chemical engineering , (hydroxyethyl)methacrylate , fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , polymer , nanotechnology , composite material , engineering
Hybrid nanocomposites of poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) and TiO 2 nanoparticles were synthesized via surface thiol‐lactam initiated radical polymerization by following the grafting from strategy. Initially, TiO 2 nanoparticles were modified by 3‐mercaptopropyl trimethoxysilane to prepare thiol functionalized TiO 2 nanoparticles (TiO 2 SH). Subsequently, surface initiated polymerization of 2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate was conducted by using TiO 2 SH and butyrolactam as an initiating system. The anchoring of PHEMA onto the surface of TiO 2 nanoparticles was investigated by FTIR, 1 H‐NMR, XPS, TGA, and XRD analyses. The experimental results indicated a strong interaction between PHEMA and TiO 2 nanoparticles owing to covalent bonding. The TEM and SEM images of PHEMA‐ g ‐TiO 2 showed that the agglomeration propensity of TiO 2 nanoparticles was significantly reduced upon the PHEMA functionalization. The molecular weight and polydispersity index of the cleaved PHEMA from the surface of TiO 2 nanocomposites were estimated by GPC analysis. An improved thermal property of the nanocomposites was observed from TGA analysis. PHEMA‐ g ‐TiO 2 nanocomposites were found to be highly dispersible in organic solvents. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013