DIFFUSE-REFLECTANCE FOURIER-TRANSFORM INFRARED-SPECTRA OF WOOD FIBERSTREATED WITH MALEATED POLYPROPYLENES

The esterification reaction between wood fibers and maleated polypropy lenes was investigated. The reaction was conducted in a reactor in the presence of xylene used as a solvent and sodium hypophosphite as cata lyst. The reaction between wood fibers and pure maleic anhydride was a lso investigated. The appearance of an infrared absorption band near 1 730 cm(-1) indicated that maleated polypropylene chemically reacted by esterification with bleached Kraft cellulose. However, no direct evid ence of an esterification reaction was obtained between thermomechanic al pulp and maleated polypropylene. The Fourier transform infrared (FT IR) studies showed also that both bleached Kraft cellulose and thermom echanical pulp reacted with maleic anhydride with the formation of est er links. (C) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.