Epoxidation of Styrene–Butadiene Rubber (SBR) Using In Situ Generated Dimethyldioxirane (DMD): Characterization and Kinetic Study

Abstract The epoxidation of styrene–butadiene rubber (SBR) was carried out using in situ generated dimethyldioxirane (DMD) as an epoxidant and tetra n-butyl ammonium bromide as phase-transfer catalyst. The epoxidation progress was monitored by 1H-, 13C-NMR and FT-IR spectroscopy. In order to optimize the epoxidation yields, kinetic studies were performed and the influences of different reaction parameters were determined. It is found that the epoxidation of SBR corresponds to second-order reaction relative to the concentration of double bonds in polymer backbone and DMD. The rate constant as well as the activation energy was established. Keywords: STYRENE-BUTADIENE RUBBERDIMETHYLDIOXIRANEEPOXIDATIONKINETIC STUDYPHASE TRANSFER CATALYSTNMR SPECTROSCOPYFT-IR SPECTROSCOPY