Blending of Quaternized Cornstarch-g-Poly(acrylic acid) (QS-g-PAA) with Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) to Improve Adhesion-to-Fibres and Film Property of Cornstarch for Surface Coating Application

By : Wei Li, Zhenzhen Xu, Linyan Zhang, Xu Wang, Anfang Wei

Page No: 431-443

Abstract
The objective of this work was to examine the effects of blending of quaternized cornstarch-g[1]poly(acrylic acid) (QS-g-PAA) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) on the mechanical property of starch film and adhesion-to-fibres of starch. The QS-g-PAA was synthesized via quaternization of acid-thinned cornstarch with N-(3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyl) trimethylammonium chloride, and further graft copolymerization of the quaternized starch with acrylic acid in aqueous medium using Fe2+-H2 O2 initiator. The influences of composition on the properties such as tensile strength, breaking elongation, stress-strain and bending endurance of QS-g-PAA/PVA blend films, and adhesion-to-fibres were investigated. It was found that blending of QS-g-PAA and PVA was not only able to enhance adhesion strengths of starch to cotton and polyester fibres, but also capable of toughening starch film. With the increase in PVA incorporated, increased adhesion strengths and film toughness were shown. The blending could be adopted to alleviate the intrinsic drawbacks (insufficient adhesion and film brittleness) of cornstarch based on the results obtained in this study.

Authors :
Wei Li, Zhenzhen Xu, Linyan Zhang, Xu Wang and Anfang Wei : College of Textiles and Garments, Anhui Polytechnic University, Wuhu 241000, China.