Continuous vinyl grafting of cellulose

Claim 1

IN A METHOD FOR THE CONTINUOUS, UNIFORM, LIQUID EMULSION GRAFTING OF A VINYL MONOMER ONTO THE EXPOSED FACES OF A CELLULOSIC MATERIAL WHEREIN THE REACTION IS CONDUCTED AT A TEMPERATURE RANGING FROM ABOUT -5*C. TO ABOUT 100*C. AND IN THE PRESENCE OF FROM ABOUT 10-6 TO ABOUT ONE MOL OF AN INITIATOR PER MOL OF VINYL MONOMER AND FROM ABOUT 0.75% TO ABOUT 2.0%, VOLUME, BASED ON THE TOTAL VOLUME OF GASES PRESENT, OF OXYGEN, AND A PH OF NOT GREATER THAN ABOUT 3.5, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES CONTINUALLY ADDING SUFFICIENT MONOMERACIDIC INITATOR MIXTURE TO THE REACTION MEDIA SO AS TO MAINTAIN SAID INITIATOR CONCENTRATION AND PH WITHIN THEIR RESPECTIVE RANGES, CONTINUALLY WITHDRAWING A PORTION OF SAID MONOMER-INITIATOR CONCENTRATION AND PH WITHIN THEIR RESPECTIVE RANGES, CONTINUALLY WITHDRAWING A PORTION OF SAID MONOMER-INITIATOR MIXTURE, MAINTAINING SAID WITHDRAWN PORTION WITHIN SAID TEMPERATURE RANGE AND RETURNING AT LEAST PART OF SAID HEATED PORTION TO SAID REACTION MEDIA AT SUCH A VISCOSITY SO AS TO CAUSE TURBULENCE OF SAID MEDIA AND THEREBY MAINTAIN THE EMULSION STABLE, CONTINUALLY MEASURING THE CONCENTRATION OF THE OXYGEN IN THE LIQUID AND THE GASES IN AND AROUND SAID REACTION MEDIA AND ADJUSTING THE ADDITION OF OXYGEN IN RESPONSE TO SAID MEASURINGS, SO AS TO MAINTAIN SAID CONCENTRATION THEREOF, CONTINUOUSLY ADDING SAID CELLULOSIC MATERIAL TO SAID REACTION MEDIA, CONTINUOUSLY CAUSING SAID MATERIAL TO FLOW SUBSURFACE TO SAID REACTION MEDIA AND CONTINUOUSLY RECOVERING GRAFTED CELLULOSE MATERIAL.