In the work, reported in this paper, maleated epoxidized natural
rubber (MENR) was used to prepare reactive blends of NR-g-CSt.
Evidence for the formation of a graft copolymer was found at
1790 cm−1 due to a chemical reaction between the ENR and the
maleic anhydride (MA) carbon atom. With an increase in the MA
content, the particle size and zeta potential of the maleated ENR
particles increased due to a change in the chemical composition of
the surface of the ENR particles. The swelling ratio decreased with
an increase in the MA content due to both cross-linking and the
hydrophilic group formed in the grafting between the ENR and the
MA. However, the percentage grafting decreased with an increase
ofthe MA content. This was due to the many side reactions such as
chain scission and chain transfer reactions