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Updated: Oct 17, 2025

Grafting Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes with Polystyrene to Enable Self-Assembly and Anisotropic Patchiness
Published on: April 1, 2018
Radiation Graft-Copolymerization of Ultrafine Fully Vulcanized Powdered Natural Rubber: Effects of Styrene and
Niratchaporn Rimdusit1, Chanchira Jubsilp2, Phattarin Mora1
1Research Unit in Polymeric Materials for Medical Practice Devices, Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.
Abstract:
Graft copolymers, deproteinized natural rubber-graft-polystyrene (DPNR-g-PS) and deproteinized natural rubber-graft-polyacrylonitrile (DPNR-g-PAN), were prepared by the grafting of styrene (St) or acrylonitrile (AN) monomers onto DPNR latex via emulsion copolymerization. Then, ultrafine fully vulcanized powdered natural rubbers (UFPNRs) were produced by electron beam irradiation of the graft copolymers in the presence of di-trimethylolpropane tetra-acrylate (DTMPTA) as a crosslinking agent and, subsequently, a fast spray drying process. The effects of St or AN monomer contents and the radiation doses on the chemical structure, thermal stability, and physical properties of the graft copolymers and UFPNRs were investigated. The results showed that solvent resistance and grafting efficiency of DPNR-g-PS and DPNR-g-PAN were enhanced with increasing monomer content. SEM morphology of the UFPNRs showed separated and much less agglomerated particles with an average size about 6 μm. Therefore, it is possible that the developed UFPNRs grafted copolymers with good solvent resistance and rather high thermal stability can be used easily as toughening modifiers for polymers and their composites.
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