Radiation crosslinking of poly(vinyl chloride) with trimethylolpropanetrimethacrylate. II. Dependence on radiation dose and blend composition

Abstract

Abstract The radiation crosslinking of poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) blended with trimethylolpropanetrimethacrylate (TMPTMA) has been examined. The polyfunctional TMPTMA undergoes polymerization incorporating the PVC into a 3‐dimensional network. The kinetics and mechanisms of these crosslinking reactions were studied with particular reference to dependence on radiation dose and blend composition. The crosslinking rate was found to be proportional to the TMPTMA concentration. As the TMPTMA concentration decreased, soluble graft copolymers were produced in addition to insoluble networks. A gel permeation chromatography technique provided compositional information on the gel and sol fractions. The competition between polymerization, grafting, and degradation reactions was examined.