Hydroxyl terminated liquid natural rubber (HTLNR) was prepared by the depolymerization of deproteinized natural rubber (DPNR) in mixture of toluene and water at 60 o C for 24 hours in the presence of ammonium persulfate as an initiator and tetrahydrofuran (THF) as a homogenizing agent. GPC analysis revealed that the number-average molecular weight (M n ) and weight-average molecular weight (M w ) of HTLNR were found to be 4.334×10 3 g/mol and 11.702×10 3 g/mol, respectively, with polydispersity index (PDI) of 2.7. The chemical structure of HTLNR was determined by FTIR and 1 H-NMR and 13 C-NMR spectroscopic analysis. Based on the analytical data the mechanism of depolymerization and hydroxylation of NR to form HTNR was also suggested.Keywords: deproteinized natural rubber (DPNR), hydroxyl terminated liquid natural rubber (HTLNR), depolymerization of natural rubber, oxidative degradation.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.