In this article, the grafting copolymerization of maleic anhydride (MAH) onto high density polyethylene (HDPE) was carried out through solvothermal process. Infrared spectra (IR) revealed that MAH had been successfully grafted onto the HDPE backbone. The influences of the reaction parameters on the;rafting copolymerization, e.g., the concentration of the initiator, MAH and HDPE content, reaction time, reaction temperature, comonomer, and different solvents were also studied. Further studies found that MAH could be grafted onto HDPE in both good solvents and poor solvents, which was much different from the traditional solution grafting method. (c) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 104: 3443-3452, 2007.