Parametric Studies on Radiation Grafting of Tripropylene Glycol Diacrylate onto Waste Tire Dust

Waste tire dust (WTD) was activated and modified via an electron beam to graft with tripropylene glycol diacrylate (TPGDA) monomer. This process was investigated in conjunction with reaction parameters, namely, monomer concentration, absorbed dose, grafting temperature, and grafting time. The effect of grafting conditions on the grafting yield (GY) was explored. It was found that GY increased with the increase of absorbed dose, TPGDA monomer concentration, and the grafting temperature. However, a further increase in the grafting reaction time did not affect the GY. The radiation-induced grafting technique used in this study was successful, with the maximum GY of 24.72 at an optimum grafting parameter of 5 w/v% TPGDA concentration, 60 kGy irradiation dose, 3 hours reaction time, and 60 °C reaction temperature. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) were employed to provide evidence for the formation of graft copolymers in the grafting systems. It is evident from the FTIR analysis that the radiation grafting method successfully introduced a large number of carbonyl groups onto the WTD surface, as demonstrated by the emergence of a new peak at 1720 cm-1. The surface morphology of the grafted WTD appeared thicker, swelled, and coated compared to non-grafted WTD, followed by the integration of the TPGDA monomer into the backbone of the WTD, resulting in the expansion of the WTD's average diameter by approximately 111.5%. The results of the present study demonstrate that radiation-induced grafting techniques can be successfully employed to prepare grafted WTD.