Surface Modification of Poly(vinyl alcohol) Fibers

The surfaces of PVA fibers prepared by in situ fibrillation were modified by first crosslinking using glyoxal and then attaching cationic and anionic groups by grafting. Crosslinking prior to modification was beneficial in minimizing the solubility of the fibers in the aqueous medium in which they were modified. Heterogeneous modification techniques were employed so that fiber properties could be preserved. PAA and PDMC were grafted from the PVA microfibrils using the KPS/NaS2O3 redox initiating system. Grafting was confirmed by FTIR and NMR spectroscopy. The modified PVA fibers were also analyzed by DSC, TGA, and SEM. The results presented in this study are based on the surface modification of PVA fibers by grafting cationic and anionic polymers from the surfaces. The techniques used involve, firstly, crosslinking the fibers (in order to insolubilize the amorphous regions), then secondly swelling them (to expose a majority of the hydroxyl groups), and then grafting using the potassium persulfate/sodium thiosulfate (KPS/Na2S2O3) redox initiating system. The crosslinked and modified fibers were analyzed using FT‐IR, NMR, DSC, TGA, and SEM.