Poly(acrylonitrile) grafted Ipomoea seed-gums: a renewable reservoir to industrial gums.

Plants of Ipomoea genus are widely distributed in India as wild vegetation and are reported source for the seed gums. Seed gums from Ipomoea dasysperma, Ipomoea hederacea, and Ipomoea palmata plants were grafted with polyacrylonitrile (PAN) using potassium persulfate/ascorbic acid redox initiator for modifying their properties for potential industrial applications. Under identical grafting conditions, the extent of the grafting was observed to be dependent on the galactose-to-mannose ratio and the degree of the branching in the galactomannans. Viscosity, gel formation, film formation, and the shelf life of the grafted gum solutions and water and saline retention capacity of the grafted seed gums were determined and compared with the parent gums. Water retention of the alkalie hydrolyzed grafted seed gums were also studied. Grafted gums were characterized using FTIR, NMR, and XRD analysis.