Homogeneous grafting poly (methyl methacrylate) on cellulose by atom transfer radical polymerization

Methyl methacrylate (MMA) was homogeneous-grafted on a cellulose based macro-initiator, cellulose chloroacetyl chloride by the atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) at a mild reaction temperature. The synthesized cellulose graft copolymers were characterized by FT-IR, 1H NMR and 13C NMR spectroscopies. The linear first-order kinetics of monomer conversion was determined by headspace gas chromatography. The molecular weights and their distributions of the poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) grafted onto the cellulose backbone were determined by gel permeation chromatography. The results confirmed that the generation of the cellulose grafted PMMA at 50 °C in the given solvent system was a controlled/living ATRP process.