Abstract:

Cellulose has many disadvantages，such as poor thermal stability，poor chemical stability，hydrophilicity，vulnerability to bacterial and microbial action，so chemical modifications of cellulose are necessary to overcome these disadvantages. The application and recent progress of surface modification of cellulose via atom transfer radical polymerization（ATRP）are review. Surface modification of cellulose via ATRP is proposed，to give cellulose various functionalities，such as hydrophobic，antibacterial and stimuli-responsive properties by grafting different functional monomers onto the surface of cellulose via ATRP，and improving the interfacial compatibility between fibers and matrix via ATRP. In addition，the advantages of ARGET ATRP（activators regenerated by electron transfer ATRP）is introduced，such as the amount of copper can be significantly reduced，the reaction can be conducted in the presence of limited air and the cellulose substrates are basically colorless after washing. These advantages will facilitate its industrial application in modification of cellulose.