Abstract
The paper deals with characterisation and evaluation of the transformations in waste biomass Hibiscus sabdariffa stem fibre on graft copolymerisation with ethyl acrylate (EA) and butyl acrylate (BA) monomer, using a ceric ammonium nitrate–nitric acid initiator system. Different reaction parameters, such as temperature, time, initiator concentration, monomer concentration, and pH, were optimised to obtain the maximum graft yield. The graft copolymers thus formed were characterised by FTIR, SEM, TGA, DTA, and XRD techniques. The swelling behaviour of graft copolymers in different solvents was studied and screened for dye uptake behaviour in 0.1% gentian violet dye. With increase in percentage grafting, the percentage crystallinity, crystallinity index, and moisture absorption were found to decrease, whereas the chemical resistance (against 1N HCl and 1N NaOH), thermal resistance, and solubility in organic solvents were found to increase.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.