Graft polymerization of lauryl methacrylate onto bamboo fiber—A potential material for oil spills

In this study, the co-polymer BF-g-LMA was successfully synthesized by grafting monomer lauryl methacrylate (LMA) onto bamboo fibers (BFs) using 2,2-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as an initiator. The grafting process was controlled by the monomer and AIBN concentrations, the reaction time and the temperature, and the optimal conditions were found to be [AIBN] = 0.04 mol/L, [LMA] = 1.0 mol/L, 180 min, and 75oC. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used to investigate the characteristics of the BF-g-LMA product. The oil sorption capacity of the graft co-polymer was shown to be about 20.0 g oil/g sorbent.