| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, 29208 Department of Chemistry, Wasit University, Hay Al-Rabea, Kut, Wasit, 52001 Iraq;2. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, 29208;3. Department of Materials Science, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20125 Milan, Italy |
| Abstract: | Reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization of 2,3-dimethyl-1,3-butadiene (DMB) in solution and on the surface of silica nanoparticles was investigated and PDMB-grafted silica nanoparticles (PDMB-g-SiO2 NPs) with different chain densities and molecular weights were prepared. The kinetic studies of DMB polymerization mediated by silica anchored RAFT agents at different graft densities were investigated and compared to the polymerization mediated by the corresponding free RAFT agent. The PDMB-g-SiO2 NPs were cured to prepare rubbery films and obtain matrix-free nanocomposites, which exhibited a good dispersion of silica nanoparticles and improved mechanical properties compared to the unfilled crosslinked rubber. © 2020 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci. 2020 , 58, 417–427 |
