Effect of catalyst systems and reaction conditions on the synthesis of cellulose‐<i>g</i>‐PDMAam copolymers by controlled radical polymerization

Abstract

Abstract Various copper‐based catalyst systems and reaction conditions were studied in the graft copolymerization of N,N ‐dimethylacrylamide (DMAam) with a cellulose‐based macroinitiator by controlled radical polymerization. The cellulose macroinitiator with degree of substitution DS = 0.44 was synthesized from dissolving softwood pulp in a LiCl/DMAc solution. The graft copolymerizations of DMAam, using the cellulose macroinitiator and various copper‐based catalyst systems, were then carried out in DMSO solutions. The copolymerization kinetics was followed by 1 H NMR. Water‐soluble cellulose‐ g ‐PDMAam copolymers were comprehensively characterized by ATR‐FTIR and 1 H NMR spectroscopies and SEC analyses. DLS and steady‐shear viscosity measurements revealed that when the DP graft of the cellulose‐ g ‐PDMAam copolymer is high enough, the copolymer forms a more compact structure in water. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012