| Version | Summary | Created by | Modification | Content Size | Created at | Operation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Helena Kang | -- | 184 | 2026-09-23 05:34:08 |
Covalent attachment of polymer side chains to a preformed macromolecular backbone constitutes graft polymerization. The backbone may be a soluble polymer, a film, a fiber, or a channel wall; the grafts are grown from, onto, or through that backbone. In the “grafting-from” mode, initiating sites on the backbone start a new chain-growth process, as in RAFT surface graft polymerization of antibacterial monomers from cellulose [1]. Plasma-induced graft polymerization of acrylic acid onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) films generates surface-tethered chains from plasma-created radicals [2]. Surface-directed graft polymerization within microfluidic channels likewise grows chains from wall-bound initiators [3]. “Grafting-to” attaches preformed chains through a coupling reaction, and “grafting-through” polymerizes a macromonomer. The defining architecture is a branched copolymer in which the side chains differ constitutionally or configurationally from the backbone. Random copolymerization of two monomers in one pot does not produce a graft unless one monomer is already polymeric. The concept is therefore architectural: a graft copolymer is specified by the connectivity of side chains to a distinct main chain.