Chemical binding of Jojoba liquid wax to polyethylene

Jojoba wax was chemically bonded to polyethylene-in film or hollow fiber form-via a stable sulfonamide bond. The jojoba-bonded polyethylene was obtained by binding allyl amino jojoba derivatives to chlorosulfonated polyethylene. The amount of jojoba added to the polymer ranged from 9 to 98% (w/w), depending on the reaction conditions. Swelling of the polymer in the reaction solvent was the major factor affecting the efficacy of the chemical binding of the jojoba amino groups to the chlorosulfonyl entities of the polymer. The double-bond regions in the bound jojoba wax were preserved, i.e., they were shown to be reactive in a bromination reaction. These modified membranes can find application in separation processes, such as metal ion separation and pervaporation.