M. J. Fernández

Graft copolymerization of vinyl acetate and methyl acrylate onto cellulose by ceric ion initiator system: study of the crystallinity☆

Abstract Several samples of cotton cellulose (both native and mercerized) were grafted with vinyl acetate (VAc), methyl acrylate (MA) and a VAc-MA mixture in order to study, by X-ray diffraction, the structural changes introduced in the amorphous and the crystalline regions of the fibre by the grafting. The results indicate that the degree of crystallinity varies significantly between cottons. The crystallinity of the cellulose parts in the grafted fibres decreased with increasing grafting. Besides the use of the standard procedure for determining the degree of crystallinity, an analysis of the defects introduced in the samples is also included.