Characterization and some properties of cellulose acetate-co-polyethylene oxide blends prepared by the use of gamma irradiation

Cellulose acetate (CA), polyethylene oxide (PEO) copolymer blend was prepared using γ-rays as initiator. PEO as an additive was added with different concentrations (0 – 5%) based on cellulose acetate. As the PEO is water soluble, some portions of them were extracted into aqueous solution. To overcome this, the PEO additives were crosslinked with N,N′Methylene bis-acrylamide (MBAAm) to be stably entrapped in the CA matrix. The efficiency was calculated to be 100%. Morphological changes using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and the bulk properties such as water sorption, electrical conductivity, and chemical stability were investigated. The thermal stability of the developed copolymer blend has also been studied using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). Different variations of the copolymerization were studied such as crosslinker concentration and ratio of PEO to cellulose acetate. It was observed that the addition of small amounts of PEO 3 weight % as an additive resulted in a considerable change of the thermal characteristics.