Preparation of antimicrobial sutures by preirradiation grafting onto polypropylene monofilament

Antimicrobial sutures were prepared by the radiation grafting of acrylonitrile monomer onto polypropylene (PP) monofilament. The grafted sutures were subsequently hydrolyzed to transform nitrile groups into carboxylic groups for the immobilization of antimicrobial drug, tetracycline hydrochloride (TC). The modified sutures show continuous release of drug for a period of 4–5 days. The antimicrobial activity of the sutures was determined against both Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria by the zone of inhibition technique. Zone of inhibition was observed around the drug‐containing sutures in the plate inoculated with Escherichia coli (E. coli), Klebsiella pneumonea (K. pneumonea), and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). The results of infection studies in albino rats against S. aureus showed no infection even after fourth postoperative day of surgery. This is because of the release of the TC drug at the site of injury, which inhibits the bacterial growth. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Plasma modification of polypropylene surfaces and grafting copolymerization of styrene onto polypropylene

The surface ofpolypropylene (iPP) is modified with glow discharge plasma of Ar,so that the modified surfaces of iPP films are obtained.The studies of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) show the surface etching pattern of iPP films.The chemical structures of iPP films are confirmed by X-ray photoelec     

甲基丙烯酸缩水甘油酯/苯乙烯固相接枝聚丙烯

以苯乙烯(St)为共单体，过氧化苯甲酰(BPO)为引发剂，采用固相接枝反应将甲基丙烯酸缩水甘油酯(GMA)接枝到聚丙烯(PP)大分子链上。研究了反应时间、单体用量、引发剂用量等因素对接枝率的影响。采用凝胶渗透色谱(GPE)测定了PP和接枝物PP-g-(GMA-St)的分子量和分子量分布。结果 表明固相接枝PP反应条件为[GMA／[St]=2，反应3．5h，加入GMA 10份，BPO 5份。St的加入有助于GMA与PP的接枝，同时在一定程度上抑制了PP的降解。     

Synthesis of perfluorinated cation exchange membranes by preirradiation grafting of acrylic acid onto ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene films

Hydrophilic carboxyl-containing fluoromembranes were obtained by preirradiation grafting of acrylic acid onto ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene film. The dependence of the grafting reaction on temperature, monomer concentration, nature and concentration of inhibitor, crosslinking agent, solvent, and on the preirradiation dose was investigated. The grafting rates increase with temperature, whereas the saturation degree of grafting (SDG) decreases. Addition of inhibitor minimizes homopolymerization and at the same time hinders the grafting reaction. The SDG increases markedly with monomer concentration until it reaches a maximum and thereafter decreases. The grafting rates increase with preirradiation dose. Addition of crosslinking agent initially decreases the SDG, and thereafter increases. The highest grafting rates are obtained using water as solvent followed by methanol and ethanol. The results are discussed on the basis of various parameters: interaction between monomer diffusibility and the viscosity of the monomer bath, the mutual reactivity of monomer, and the crosslinking agent. An agreement is observed between the values of the electrical resistance and the saturation degree of grafting. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Application of surface wettability modified polypropylene nonwoven in Janus composite fibrous mats for the function of directional water transport

Textiles with the function of directional water (sweat) transport play a pivotal role in regulating human thermal and wet comfort. Polypropylene nonwoven (PPNW) fabric has an excellent moisture (sweat) conduction due to its inert water absorption, which makes moisture be difficult to adhere on the PP fiber surface. Nevertheless, excessive hydrophobicity also affects the comfort of clothing materials, and thus it is significant to improve wettability of PP fiber used in the field of textile. In this study, it was reported a kind of composite fibrous mats with the function of directional water transport. The polymerization of acrylic acid (AAc) was grafted on the surface of plasma‐treated PPNW (TPPNW) as the inner layer (TPPNW‐AAc), which was able to improve the wettability of the PPNW surface. Polyacrylonitrile containing alumina nano‐particles (PAN‐Al₂O₃) layer was deposited on the surface of TPPNW‐AAc by electrospinning technology as the outer layer. The wettability difference between the inner and outer layers of the material was utilized to induce the push‐pull effect to transport water from the TPPNW‐AAc layer to the PAN‐Al₂O₃ layer. The surface wettability of the TPPNW‐AAc layer and the performance of the directional water transport of composite fibrous mats were characterized systematically. Experimental results demonstrated that the composite fibrous mats showed the excellent accumulative one‐way transport index (AOTI, 870%), remarkable overall moisture management capacity (OMMC, 0.8) when the contact angle of the TPPNW‐AAc surface can be reduced from 119° to 30°, and decent wearability performance.     

Preparation, structure and properties of PP-g-AA grafting copolymer

Polypropylene grafting with AA was prepared by reactive extrusion with pre-irradiated PP (rPP) as the homogeneous initiator. The effects of the pre-irradiated dose, the fraction of rPP and the concentration of acrylic acid on the grafting reaction were studied and the grafted PP was characterized by Fourier transition infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and polarized light microscopy (PLM). The results show that the degradation of PP was suppressed efficiently with this novel method for preparing PP-g-AA copolymers, and the grafted copolymers with good mechanical properties were obtained. It was found that the product with higher graft degree (G _d)(0.19%) and relatively excellent mechanical properties can be produced if the mass ratio of PP/rPP/AA is 90:10:0.8, where the selected pre-irradiation dose of rPP is 4 kGy. Moreover, an adhesive strength of 4.88 kN/m was reached in the PP-g-AA/aluminum laminate. __________ Translated from Chinese Journal of Applied Chemistry, 2007, 24(7): 737–741 [译自: 应用化学]     

Oxidation of polyethylene surface by glow discharge and subsequent graft copolymerization of acrylic acid

Plasma-induced graft copolymerization of acrylic acid, which was incorporated into PE films, was investigated here. The influence of plasma conditions such as plasma treatment gases, power, pressure, time, monomer concentration, and graft copolymerization time on polymerization yield was determined. The samples were characterized by ESCA, IR, and water contact angle. A respective chemical shift of the C1s signal of Ar or O₂ plasmatreated and untreated PE films was revealed by ESCA, in which the presence of the grafted PAAc was also verified. An increase in polymerization yield with plasma treatment duration and power was found. That the grafted copolymerization was limited to a very thin surface region was revealed by optical microscopy on the cross section of the grafted film. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Characterization and antimicrobial properties of metal complexes of polypropylene fibers grafted with acrylic acid using gamma irradiation

Polypropylene fibers were treated against microbial effects by gamma radiation‐induced grafting of acrylic acid, followed by metal complexation with Zn²⁺ or Ag⁺ metal ions. The treated polypropylene fibers were characterized by using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The effect of the treatment on the thermal stability was investigated by using thermogravimetric analysis, in which a slight increase in the major thermal stability was observed. The antimicrobial activity of the treated fibers was also evaluated. On the basis of the obtained results, it was found that the antimicrobial properties of the treated fibers were enhanced both qualitatively, as indicated by the distinct inhibition zone diameter towards Gram‐positive as well as Gram‐negative bacterial strains under study, and quantitatively, in which 100% inhibition of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli was achieved. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Characterization of surface energetic heterogeneity of pure and poly (acrylic acid)‐adsorbed carbon nanotubes by deconvoluting the nitrogen adsorption isotherm

The surface energetic heterogeneity of pure and poly (acrylic acid) (PAA)‐adsorbed carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were studied by a nitrogen probe adsorption technique in a wide range of pressures. The adsorption energy distributions (AEDs) were calculated from the low‐pressure data of isotherms by deconvoluting the low‐pressure experimental nitrogen adsorption isotherms. The surface of pure CNTs is heterogeneous as its AED presents four peaks at 42, 52, 57 and 78 K. It is observed that the AED of CNTs can be evidently modified by PAA adsorption. While the PAA adsorption amount increases, the high‐energy peaks at 52, 57 and 78 K gradually weaken and diminish at last, whereas the low ones such as at 42 K strengthen and new peaks arise at 27 and 32 K. It is proposed that PAA molecules prefer interacting with and screening the higher energetic sites to the lower ones. It will facilitate the understanding of the polymer adsorption on energetic heterogeneity surfaces. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Immobilization of Ciliary Neurotrophic Factor on Model Biomaterials by Plasma Graft Polymerization

Acrylic acid was grafted on the surface of polypropylene (PP) film via plasma‐induced technology. It was shown by FT‐IR that there were carboxyl groups on the surface of the modified PP film. The grafting ratio was analyzed quantitatively through a dyeing process. The effects of the technology parameters of the plasma‐treatment and graft polymerization on the grafting ratio, such as power, discharge time, concentration of monomer and active species density, reaction temperature and time, were characterized. Moreover, the content of ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) that was anchored on the surface of the modified PP film was measured through enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The results show that the amount of CNTF immobilized on the surface of the modified PP film increase with increasing content of carboxyl groups, showing that the existence of carboxyl groups on the surface of the PP film is beneficial to the immobilization of CNTF.     

Radiation-induced graft polymerization of acrylic acid onto fluorinated polymers. II. Graft copolymer–metal complexes obtained by radiation grafting onto poly(tetrafluoroethylene-ethylene) copolymer

A study has been made on the graft copolymers obtained by radiation-induced grafting of acrylic acid onto poly(tetrafluoroethylene-ethylene) (ET) films. The conversion of the graft copolymer into metal acrylate copolymer complex was carried out by treatment with different metal salts. Such a prepared graft copolymer–metal complex was confirmed by different methods: IR, UV spectrometry, degree of coloration, and x-ray fluorescence. Some selected properties of the graft copolymer–metal complexes such as electrical conductivity, swelling behavior, and mechanical properties were investigated. The influence of metal complexes in the graft copolymers was determined and compared with the grafted films. The possibility of the practical uses for such prepared graft copolymer–metal complexes was discussed and determined. It was assumed that such materials may be of great interest in the field of semiconducting materials in addition to their applicability as cation-exchange membranes. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Radical grafting from glass fiber surface: Graft polymerization of vinyl monomers initiated by azo groups introduced onto the surface

This paper describes the radical graft polymerization of vinyl monomers from glass fiber surface initiated by alkylazo groups introduced onto the fiber surface. The introduction of azo groups onto the glass fiber surface was achieved by reaction of isocyanate groups which were previously attached onto the surface with two kinds of azo initiators, 4,4′-azobis(4-cyanopentanoic acid) (ACPA) and 2,2′-azobis(2-cyanopropanol) (ACP). The amounts of surface azo groups introduced by ACPA and ACP were both determined to be 1.3 × 10⁻⁵ mol g⁻¹ by nitrogen analysis. The radical graft polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) was found to be initiated in the presence of the glass fiber having surface azo groups. During the polymerization, part of resultant poly(MMA) grafted onto the fiber surface through propagation of the polymer from the surface radicals produced by the decomposition of the azo groups. The percentage of grafting of poly(MMA) reached 48.1% after 24 h. The graft polymerizations of other monomers, such as styrene, N-vinylcarbazole, and acrylic acid, were also initiated by the surface azo groups, and the corresponding polymer effectively grafted onto the surface. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 2121–2128, 1999     

Study of ultraviolet light and ozone surface modification of polypropylene

Chemical reactions of the surface of a polypropylene (PP) film in the presence of various combinations of ultraviolet light and ozone gas (UVO) conditions were studied. Exposure of the polymer surface was carried out in a laboratory-scale UVO reactor in which the following parameters could be varied: ozone concentration, wavelength of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, pulsed operation of the UV lamps, the treatment distance between the PP film and the lamps, and water vapor concentration. Advancing and receding contact angle measurements were used to monitor surface energy changes imparted by the treatment. Two spectroscopic techniques, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and attenuated total reflectance–Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR–FTIR), were used to monitor changes in the polymer surface chemistry. Oxidation of the PP surface is proposed to occur through two alternate mechanisms: (1) insertion of an O (¹D) atom to form ether linkages, or (2) hydrogen abstraction by O (³P), followed either by crosslinking or by reaction with oxygen species to form carbonyl and/or carboxyl functional groups. It was found that reaction 1 dominates initially, but that its rate is reduced by the formation of products from reaction 2. It appears that the ether functional groups produced by reaction 1 are responsible primarily for increased surface energy. Carbonyl, carboxyl, and hydroxyl groups formed in reaction 2 appear to have little additional effect on surface energy; it is proposed that these groups are involved strongly in intramolecular hydrogen bonding, thereby decreasing their availability to contribute to increased surface energy. High-energy UV radiation was found to play only a minor role in the surface modification of PP. Of the narrow range of ozone concentrations studied, no clear relationship was found to exist between ozone concentration and rate of modification of the surface; thus, the concentration of ozone must not affect the relative concentrations of products from the competing reactions. Increased surface oxidation and decreased contact angles were observed when the lamp-to-sample distance was minimized. The presence of water vapor during UVO treatment was found to lead to greater oxygen uptake after short-term treatments but did not result in increased surface energy. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 2489–2501, 1999     

Surface grafting of cobalt complexes on polymeric supports: Evidence for site isolation and applications to reversible dioxygen binding

Imprinted polymers were synthesized using the surface‐grafting technique with [Co(III) 1 (vpy)(dmap)]PF₆ { 1 , bis[2‐hydroxy‐4‐(4‐vinylbenzyloxy)benzaldehyde]ethylene‐diimine; vpy: 4‐vinylpyridine; dmap: N,N′‐dimethyl‐4‐aminopyridine} as the template. The metallated sites were probed using spectroscopic techniques including UV–vis, Fourier transform infrared, and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopies to investigate the site architecture and isolation of the immobilized sites in the surface‐grafted polymers. EPR studies showed a distribution of four and five coordinated sites similar to the bulk copolymers, and the surface‐grafted polymer showed reversible binding to dioxygen in multiple cycles. Both results indicated site isolation in the surface‐grafted polymers analogous to the bulk polymers. Although the dioxygen binding in surface‐grafted polymers is reversible, the spin density decreases to 50% in the third cycle as opposed to bulk copolymers. This indicates that the sites are more heterogeneous and more exposed to the environment than the analogous sites in bulk copolymers. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 39: 888–897, 2001     

Influence of different functionality degree grafting monomers on polypropylene melt radical branching reaction and their structure

Long‐chain–branched polypropylene (LCBPP) is one of polypropylenes (PPs) with high melt strength and good melt elasticity. Recently, due to its outstanding properties, LCBPP have been attracted increasingly attention in the field of development and characterization by the researchers all over the world. In this study, LCBPP was prepared by the melt radical branching reaction in a torque rheometer. The influences of various acrylate monomers with different functionality degrees on the structure and melt performance of PP products were investigated. The results indicated that grafting monomers with different functionality degrees made diverse influences on the branching density and branching chain length of branching PP products. With the increase of the functionality degree of grafting monomers, the branching level of PP products increased gradually and the “multiplicity” of branches became increasingly obvious. Besides, a higher reactivity of pentaerythritol triacrylate with hydroxyl than the similar molecular structured pentaerythritol tetraacrylate was confirmed. Furthermore, due to the high reactivity of dipentaerythritol penta(hexa)acrylate, branching and crosslinking reaction occurred simultaneously during the reaction process. As a result, the gel content increased and finally formed highly star branching structures with a shape of “dense and short.”     

Metal‐imprinted microsphere prepared by surface template polymerization and its application to chromatography

A metal ion‐imprinted microsphere was prepared by surface molecular template polymerization. Trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate (TRIM), zinc ions, 1,12‐dodecanediol‐O, O′‐diphenyl phosphonic acid (DDDPA) were used as a crosslinking agent, an imprint molecule, and a functional host molecule. The Zn(II)‐imprinted microspheres, which are spherically well‐defined particles, were prepared by using water‐in‐oil‐in‐water (W/O/W) multiple emulsions. The combination of TRIM and DDDPA serves to align the recognition sites resulting in better template sites produced on the polymer surface. We firstly conducted diagnostic zinc‐ and copper‐ion adsorption tests with the Zn(II)‐imprinted and unimprinted microspheres in order to make an assessment on the effectiveness of the molecular imprinting technique. Further, the metal‐imprinted microspheres were applied to the column operation. The separation and recovery of metals were carried out by an adsorption column packed with the Zn(II)‐imprinted microspheres. This performance was compared to that of commercial chelating resins that possess similar phosphoric functional groups. The Zn(II)‐imprinted polymer shows an extremely high selectivity to the imprinted zinc ions compared to that of the commercial chelating resin. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 689–696, 2000     

丙烯酸基水凝胶处理重金属废水的研究进展

重金属废水因其对环境污染严重、危害人类健康而越来越引起人们的重视。丙烯酸基高分子水凝胶由于含有多种功能基团和大量的活性吸附位点,在重金属吸附方面发挥了重要作用。本文主要综述了丙烯酸基高分子水凝胶在重金属废水处理方面的研究进展,总结和归纳了其制备方法和分类等,分析了聚丙烯酸基高分子水凝胶作为吸附剂在重金属废水处理方面存在的问题,并对其后续应用和研究进行了展望。     

Preparation of Iminoacetic Acid-type Composite Chelating Material IAA-PEI/SiO2 and Preliminary Studies on Chelating Adsorption Property towards Heavy Metal Ions

Polyamine polyethyleneimine (PEI) was first grafted on the surfaces of micro-sized silica gel particles in the manner of the coupling graft (the manner of “grafting to”), forming the grafting particles PEI/SiO₂. Subsequently, via a polymer reaction, the nucleophilic substitution reaction between the primary and secondary amino groups of the grafted PEI macromolecule and chloroactic acid (CAA), iminoacetic acid groups were bonded onto the grafted PEI chains, and an iminoacetic acid (IAA)-type composite chelating material, IAA-PEI/SiO₂, was formed. In this work, the preparation process of IAA-PEI/SiO₂ particles was mainly researched, and the effects of the main factors on the polymer reaction, i.e., the nucleophilic substitution reaction, were examined emphatically. The adsorption behavior of IAA-PEI/SiO₂ particles towards several kinds of heavy metal ions was preliminarily evaluated. The experiments results show that it is feasible to introduce IAA groups onto PEI/SiO₂ particles via the substitution reaction between CAA and the amino groups of the grafted PEI. The reaction rate is affected greatly by the feed ratio of the amino group of PEI to CAA, so the substitution reaction between CAA and the amino groups of the grafted PEI is a bimolecular nucleophilic substitution reaction (S_N2). The reaction temperature and the used amount of acid-acceptor NaHCO₃ affect the bonding rate of IAA groups greatly. The fitting temperature was 60°C, and 1:1 of the molar ratio of NaHCO₃ to CAA was an appropriate amount of acid-acceptor NaHCO₃. Under the above optimal reaction conditions and with 3:1 molar ratio of amino group of PEI to CAA, 72% of the IAA group bonding rate (it is based on the hydrogen atoms in the primary and secondary amino groups of the grafted PEI) in 8 h can be reached. The composite chelating material IAA-PEI/SiO₂ possesses a strong chelating adsorption ability for heavy metal ions because of the increase of the ligands and formation of stable five-membered chelate rings.     

Patterning of cells on a PVC film surface functionalized by ion irradiation

Micropatterns of cells on a poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) film surface were created by using ion irradiation. A PVC film was irradiated with H⁺ ions through a pattern mask in order to create patterns of the hydrophilic/hydrophobic regions on the PVC surface. The effect of ion irradiation on the surface properties of the PVC film was characterized by using Fourier transform‐infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR), water contact angle measurement, and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results revealed that the chemical environment of the PVC film surface was effectively changed by ion irradiation due to dehydrochlorination and oxidation. The in vitro cell culture on the patterned PVC film surface showed selective adhesion and proliferation of the cells on the ion‐irradiated regions. Well‐defined 50 µm patterns of the cells were obtained on the PVC film surface irradiated to 1 × 10¹⁵ ions/cm². Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.