Fabrication of Glycidyl Methacrylate (GMA) Grafted Cellulose from Rice Straw

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to prepare and characterize cellulose grafted with glycidyl methacrylate (GMA). Cellulose was isolated from rice straw by chemical method. The acid concentration used during the hydrolysis process affects the size of the cellulose produced, therefore in this study different concentrations of sulfuric acid (50%, 60%, and 70%) were used. Particle Size Analyzer (PSA) results showed the best concentration of sulfuric acid was 50%. Glycidyl methacrylate-grafted cellulose (GMA-g-C) was prepared by different concentration of GMA (15%, 20%, and 25%). GMA-g-C particles were characterized by FT-IR and XRD. FT-IR spectra confirmed the formation of GMA-g-C and XRD data showed the decrease in crystallinity of cellulose after grafting process. The optimum grafting conditions were obtained at 20% GMA with a grafting percentage (Pg) of 233.3% and grafting efficiency (GE) of 27.26%.