Grafting and quaternization of 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate onto polyamide-6 fabric pretreated with acetone

Grafting of polyamide (PA-6) pretreated with acetone was done using 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEM). It was found that the percentage graft yield of acetone-pretreated PA fabric was higher than the untreated and there was a difference of 4% under the same conditions. The graft yield was studied as a function of the different variable conditions such as monomer concentration, reaction time, and temperature. The pretreated and grafted DMAEM-PA fabric was then quaternized with different alkylating agents including ethyl iodide, benzyl chloride, and epichlorohydrin. The grafted and quaternized fabrics had a significant increase in dyeability. The quaternized fabric showed higher moisture regain compared to the ungrafted one and that could enhance the antistatic effect of such fibers. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 81: 2318–2323, 2001