Synthesis and characterization of glycidyl methacrylate-starch graft copolymer

Graft copolymerization of glycidyl methacrylate(GMA)onto cassava starch was carried out in emulsion with potassium persulfate as an initiator. Influence of reaction conditions on the percentage of grafting(G),grafting efficiency(GE)and epoxy value(EV)were investigated. Structure of the synthesized graft copolymers was characterized by TG-DSC. Results showed that graft copolymer with high values of G,GE and EV was obtained. The optimal conditions for the graft copolymerization were found as m(GMA):m(starch)= 2 with initiator concentration of 6 mmol·L-1 for 1h of reaction at 60 ℃,with which the G,GE and EV values of the obtained graft copolymer were 64.95%,95.57% and 4.24 mmol/g,respectively. It was proved that the thermal stability of the graft copolymer was better than cassava starch.