Crystalline nanocellulose (CNC) has been receiving increasing attention in recent years due to its unique properties and potential applications in a broad range of industries. However, in most organic solvent-based media, CNC has limited dispersity which gives rise to aggregate formation and thus compromises its performance. There have been relatively few studies reporting on the functionalization of CNC through grafting polymer from its surface, and those reports have usually involved processes that  are either not robust or environmental friendly. A new route is proposed and employed to modify the CNC surface with polymers to modify its properties including dispersibility in organic media. First, a CNC macroinitiator was prepared through an esterification reaction. In the second step, poly(methyl acrylate) was grafted from the CNC macroinitiator using copper-mediated living radical polymerization. The present work demonstrates a facile and relatively environmental friendly approach for grafting polymer from a CNC surface.

Crystalline nanocellulose functionalization through copper-mediated living radical polymerization

245th National Meeting (2013)

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