Preparation and flocculation behavior of cellulose‐g‐PMOTAC copolymer

As a contribution to the wider use of biodegradable materials, this article reports the synthesis and testing of cationic polyelectrolyte cellulose derivatives for use as flocculation chemicals. Cellulose macroinitiator is synthesized in DMAc/LiCl solvent system by direct acylation of cellulose with 2-bromoisobutyryl bromide. Cellulose-graft-poly(N,N-dimethyl aminoethyl methacrylate) (cellulose-g-PDMAEMA) copolymers are prepared by copper-mediated radical polymerization in homogeneous medium. Formation of the macroinitiator and graft copolymers is confirmed by ATR-FTIR and 1H NMR. Quaternization of the graft chains to poly(methacryloxyethyl trimethylammonium chloride) (PMOTAC) produces cellulose-g-PMOTAC, which performs similarly to a commercial product in flocculation of pulp and kaolin. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014, 131, 40448.