Synthesis and characterization of copolymer grafted magnetic nanoparticles via surface‐initiated nitroxide‐mediated radical polymerization

Abstract

Abstract “Grafting from” surface‐initiated nitroxide‐mediated radical polymerization (SI‐NMRP) techniques were used to synthesize poly[styrene‐ co ‐(maleic anhydride)] copolymer brushes from the Fe 3 O 4 surfaces. Well‐defined polymer chains were grown from the Fe 3 O 4 surfaces to yield particles with a Fe 3 O 4 core and a polymer outer layer. The observed narrow molecular weight distributions ( M w / M n ), linear kinetic plots and linear plots of molecular weight ( M n ) versus conversion for the free polymer indicated that the chain growth from the Fe 3 O 4 surface was a controlled process by adding an excess of 2,2,6,6‐tetramethylpiperidinyloxy (TEMPO). The modified nanoparticles were subjected to detailed characterization using XRD, TEM, FT‐IR, and TGA. The analyses of vibration sample magnetometer (VSM) verified that the nanoparticles owned good magnetic property. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2013. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers