title: Graft copolymers of natural fibers for green composites.
abstract: In the present study, free radical induced graft-copolymerization of natural cellulosic polymers (Grewia optiva) has been carried out to develop the novel materials meant for green composites and many other applications. During the graft copolymer synthesis diverse reaction parameters that significantly affect the percentage of grafting were optimized. The structural, thermal and physico-chemical changes in the natural cellulosic polymers based graft copolymers have been ascertained with scanning electron micrography, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and swelling studies. The swelling studies of the grafted cellulosic polymers have been carried out in different solvents to assess the possible applicability of these natural polymers. Green composites were also prepared using raw/grafted cellulosic polymers. It has been found that grafted polymers (Grewia optiva) based green composites gives better tensile properties than the parent natural cellulosic polymers based composites.
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, USA. Electronic address: vijayisu@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Vijay Kumar
authors.initials: VK
authors.lastname: Thakur
authors.affiliation: Division of Chemistry, Govt. Degree College Sarkaghat, Himachal Pradesh University Shimla 171005, India. Electronic address: shandilyamn@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Manju Kumari
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Thakur
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur 208016, India. Electronic address: guptark@iitk.ac.in.
authors.forename: Raju Kumar
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Gupta
mesh_terms: D002482:Cellulose / Q000737:chemistry*; D032382:Grewia / Q000737:chemistry; D058105:Polymerization; D013718:Tensile Strength; D014753:Vinyl Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D014753:Vinyl Compounds; D002482:Cellulose
keywords: FTIR; Graft copolymers; Natural cellulose; Physico-chemical characteristics; SEM; TGA