Thermal and structural properties of poly(vinyl alcohol) doped with hydroxypropyl cellulose

The growth and importance of medical and related health care and hygiene textile sectors are attributed to the improvement and innovations in both textile technology and medical procedures. The aim of this study was to examine some of the structural properties of pure poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) doped PVA of different weight percentages. This wilt lead to the choice of the optimum conditions suited for specific medical and surgical applications for which textile materials are currently used. Thermogravirnetry was used to develop an instrumental system for the study of thermal stability and for identification of the individual components of several polymer blends. Derivative thermogravimetry provided clear information and distinguished between different generic types. Also, differential scanning calorimetry and its derivatives gave accurate values of glass-transition temperature and melting temperature and gave detailed features of the steps of weight loss and changes in the heat of fusion. The X-ray diffraction technique was used to determine the crystallinity/ amorphosity ratio and the change in crystallite size at different dopant concentrations. The effect of doping with HPC on PVA structure was studied with spectrophotometric analyses. Variations in the group coordination in the IR region were followed. The data obtained indicated that measurable and remarkable changes in the thermal stability of PVA occurred at different doping concentrations. This may have been because the diffusion of dopant caused structural changes in the polymer matrix. (c) 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.