Radiation Graft Copolymerization of Rice Straw Cellulose-Acrylamide Monomer for Synthesis of Hydrogel and its Application for Chili

Agricultural productivity in Myanmar, comparing with other South East Asia countries, is considerably low because local agricultural systems still follow the traditional methods that utilise the available natural resources combined with improved cultural practices. To fulfil the major needs for improvement in agricultural productivity and to recycle the abundant agricultural wastes into useful products, current research is based on modification of rice straw cellulose through radiation copolymerization with acrylamide monomer for synthesis of hydrogel and to study its application for chili planting. Rice straw cellulose was prepared by soda process. Monomer concentration was varied from 1M up to 2M, and various radiation doses (10, 20, 30, 40, 50 kGy) were applied for graft copolymerization. Morphological structures of cellulose and grafted copolymer were analysed by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Fourier Transfer Infrared (FTIR) was used to analyse the original cellulose and grafted copolymer. The effect of radiation dose and monomer concentration on grafting efficiency and swelling degree, and effect of hydrogel on plant growth were studied. Chili (Capsicum annuum L. ) was used as cultivar for hydrogel application. Hydrogel obtained at 20 kGy using 1.5M of monomer concentration was found to be the optimum condition for growth of chili.