Persulphate initiated graft copolymerization of methacrylamide in natural rubber latex—III. Characterization of graft copolymer

An investigation of the grafting efficiency of methacrylamide during graft polymerization in natural rubber latex has shown that the efficiency is independent of the initiator and rubber concentrations but increases markedly with temperature. The overall activation energy of the graft polymerization was found to be 25 ± 2 kcal mole^?1 greater than that for the corresponding homopolymerization. The molecular weight of the free homopolymer isolated from the graft copolymerization was very close to that of polymer isolated from the analogous homopolymerization, thus demonstrating that chain transfer with rubber hydrocarbon was unimportant. Electron micrographs of grafted and control latex particles confirm earlier conclusions that grafting occurs on the surface rather than the interior of the rubber particles.