Nylon Graft Copolymers

Graft copolymers may be composed of two amorphous polymers, two crystalline polymers, or one crystalline and one amorphous polymer. Generally speaking, the crystalline component of a crystalline-amorphous pair such as a nylon-amorphous polymer graft may serve as either the backbone or the side chain. (The natural cellulose polymers discussed in the previous section are, however, exceptions, and, not possessing an accessible monomeric base, serve only as the backbone.) 

For example, Matzner et aL (1973) succeeded in grafting side chains of nylon 6 onto a polystyrene backbone by means of anionic polymerization of 8-caprolactam. To facilitate grafting, polystyrenes containing up to 5% of ethyl acrylate or methyl methacrylate as comonomer were synthesized. The ester group served as the initiator for the lactam polymerization, thus permanently attaching the side chain to the backbone. The mechanism of the reaction is as follows  

When ethyl acrylate was used at a concentration in excess of 1%, a gelled material was obtained. The crosslinking reaction thus revealed was tentatively identified as arising from the presence of tertiary hydrogen atoms in the a position with respect to the ester group. The crosslinked materials must topologically resemble the structures discussed in Section 8.7. 

The inverse synthesis (of polymers grafted to nylon) was considered by Huglin and Johnson (1972). Employing y-irradiation of nylon 6 films in the presence of acrylic acid, Huglin and Johnson found that copper salts suppressed the homopolymer reaction in favor of graft copolymerization. 

The component polymerized first usually constitutes the more continuous phase in graft copolymers (Section 3.1), unless the reacting mass is stirred. An unusual test of this principle was accomplished by Korshak and co-workers (1968) during an investigation of the coefficient of friction of systematically prepared graft copolymers of styrene on nylon 6 (see Table 

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Capron Nylon (Grafted Copolymers)] Capron Nylon (Homopolymers). See Nylon Capronaldehyde. See Hexanal Capronic acid. See Caproic acid Caproyl alcohol. See Hexyl alcohol n-Caproylaldehyde. See Hexanal Caproyl chloride. See Decanoyl chloride Capryl acetate. See Decyl acetate Capryl alcohol. See 2-Octanol Caprylaldehyde. See n-Octanal Caprylamine. See 1-Octanamine Capryl anthranilate. See Decyl anthranilate Capryl chloride. See Octyl chloride Capiyidinitrophenyl crotonate 2-Capryl-4,6-dinitrophenyl crotonate. See Dinocap... 

Th o rn I ey http //www. thorniey company, com Ticona http //www.ticona.com Trade Name Synonyms Cadco Nylon [Cadillac Plastic Chem. http //www.cadiiiacpiastic.com], Calaton CA [Uniqema UniqemaAm. http //www.uniqema.com], Capron Nylon (Grafted Copolymers) t[Honeywell Perf. Polymers http //www.honeyweiippc.com, http //www.honeyweii-piastics.com] Capron Nylon (Homopolymers) [Honeywell Perf. Polymers http //www.honeyweiippc.com, http //www.honeyweii-piastics. com] ... 

Capron Nylon (Grafted Copolymers) Capron Nylon (Homopolymers)... 

Els and McGill [48] reported the action of maleic anhydride on polypropylene-polyisoprene blends. A graft copolymer was found in situ through the modifier, which later enhanced the overall performance of the blend. Scott and Macosko [49] studied the reactive and nonreactive compatibilization of nylon-ethylene-propylene rubber blends. The nonreactive polyamide-ethylene propylene blends showed poor interfacial adhesion between the phases. The reactive polyamide-ethylene propylene-maleic anhydride modified blends showed excellent adhesion and much smaller dispersed phase domain size. 

One of the earliest references on compatibilizing a nylon-6-polypropylene blend using maleic anhydride grafted PP (PP-g-MAH) was the work of Ide and Hase-gawa published in 1974 [35]. In their study, the formation of a graft copolymer was confirmed by DSC after solvent extraction of the PP component. Blends with PP-g-MAH... 

Nylon blends, dyeing, 9 204 Nylon block copolymer, 19 762 Nylon carpet fibers, stain-resistant, 19 764 Nylon-clay nanocomposites, 11 313-314 Nylon extrusion, temperatures for, 19 789t Nylon feed yarns, spin-oriented, 19 752 Nylon fiber(s), 24 61 production of, 19 740 world production of, 19 7654 Nylon fiber surfaces, grafting of polymers on, 19 763-764... 

Graft copolymers of nylon, protein, cellulose, starch, copolymers, or vinyl alcohol have been prepared by the reaction of ethylene oxide with these polymers. Graft copolymers are also produced when styrene is polymerized by Lewis acids in the presence of poly-p-methoxystyrene. The Merrifield synthesis of polypeptides is also based on graft copolymers formed from chloromethaylated PS. Thus, the variety of graft copolymers is great. 

Poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) wall covering Cellulose acetate sheet and rods Graft copolymers Nylon (Carothers DuPont)... 

An anionic technique by indirect grafting was proposed for N-metallation of Nylon by Yamaguchi (153-155), in which alcali metals dissolved in liquid ammonia displace the amidic hydrogen atoms. Nylon derivatives and graft copolymers can be synthetized from the N-metallated Nylon (153). For ethylene oxide as grafting monomer, the metallated fibers were soaked in a tetrahydro-furan solution of the monomer, at 60° C (154). Methyl methacrylate is grafted on Nylon with a conversion over 90% by this technique (155). Other procedures involve the use of sodium methoxide in methanol solution and subsequent anionic graft copolymerization of acrylonitrile in a tetrahydrofuran solution (156). 

Interchain copolymer formation Copolymers of reactive polystyrene and polymers with amide, mercaptan, epoxy, hydroxy, anhydride or carboxylic acid groups, copolymer of polypropylene grafted with maleic anhydride and nylon-6, copolymer of polyolefines and polystyrene, copolymer of EVA grafted with methacrylates and grafted polystyrene... 

There have been many studies of graft copolymer formation initiated by ionizing radiation, and methods have been discussed.88 Among the systems studied are styrene onto polyethylene,88 styrene onto polypropylene,100 styrene onto Nylon-6,101 styrene onto ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers,102 styrene and MMA onto natural rubber,103 pentafluorostyrene onto Nylon and polyethylene,104 acrylamide onto Nylon-6,105 acrylamide onto starch,100 vinyl monomers... 

As already intimated, graft copolymers may be prepared without involvement of free-radical initiation. Graft copolymers of nylon-6,6 on cellulose acetate, such as 30, may be obtained by successive, alternate. 

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