Reactivity of functional SAN toward coreactive EPR-g-MA at planar interface

The grafting kinetics of reactive poly(styrene-co;acrylonitrile) (SAN) onto EPR-g-MA was studied under isothermal conditions, at the planar interface of an SAN/ethylene-propylene rubber (EPR) bilayer film in relation to the t ype of reactive groups, NH2 versus carbamate (which is an amine precursor), attached to SAN. The amount of SAN chemically bound to EPR chains at the i nterface was estimated by selectively washing off the unreacted SAN chains before X-ray photon spectroscopic analysis of the released surface. It is c lear that the mutual reactivity of the reactive groups, i.e., the NH2-MA pa ir versus the carbamate-MA pair, has a decisive effect on the amount of SAN that reacts with EPR-g-MA at the interface. In case of SAN-carb, the graft ing reaction is controlled by the thermolysis of the carbamate groups into primary amines. (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.