Gamma radiation-induced grafting

There are a number of important factors that must be considered before applying gamma radiation-induced grafting. These factors include the radiation sensitivity of the polymer/monomer system, radiation dose and dose rate, type and concentration of inhibitor, type of solvent or diluent, and monomer concentration. The effect of such parameters on the grafting efficiency during mutual grafting is given below. 

Scherer et al. presented in 1994 a method for gamma radiation-induced graft copolymerization of styrene and acryhc acid monomers into Teflon-FEP (poly(tetra-fluoroethylene-co-hexafluoropropylene)) films with a view to develop proton exchange membranes for various applications [541]. This process oflbrs an easy control over the composition of a membrane by careful variation in radiation dose, dose rate, monomer concentration, and temperature of the grafting reaction. 

Excitation sources for the production of radicals in grafting include chemicals, light, plasma, and radiation. Radiation-induced graft polymerization is superior to other grafting techniques because the high density of electron beams and gamma rays can create a large amount of radicals of arbitrary shapes of the p>olymer, such as a hollow fiber [2-41], nonwoven fabric [42] and film [43- ], and the quality of the polymer, such as polyethylene [2-41], polytetrafluoroethylene [42], and cellulose [55]. 

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