Natural rubber tensile strength

Tensile strength of radiation-cured purified natural rubber Tensile strength of radiation-cured purified natural rubber Examples of industrially important acrylated prepolymers The arrangement for direct roll coating Different types of cells on the surface of a gravure roll Reverse roll coating... 

Antioxidants may be assessed in a variety of ways. For screening and for fundamental studies the induction period and rate of oxidation of petroleum fractions with and without antioxidants present provide useful model systems. Since the effect of oxidation differs from polymer to polymer it is important to evaluate the efficacy of the antioxidant with respect to some property seriously affected by oxidation. Thus for polyethylene it is common to study changes in flow properties and in power factor in polypropylene, flow properties and tendency to embrittlement in natural rubber vulcanisates, changes in tensile strength and tear strength. 

This lower has a number of ramifications on the properties of polybutadiene. For example, at room temperature polybutadiene compounds generally have a higher resilience than similar natural rubber compounds. In turn this means that the polybutadiene rubbers have a lower heat build-up and this is important in tyre applications. On the other hand, these rubbers have poor tear resistance, poor tack and poor tensile strength. For this reason, the polybutadiene rubbers are seldom used on their own but more commonly in conjunction with other materials. For example, they are blended with natural rubber in the manufacture of truck tyres and, widely, with SBR in the manufacture of passenger car tyres. The rubbers are also widely used in the manufacture of high-impact polystyrene. 

Another approach has been adopted by the Du Pont Company with Adiprene C. This is a urethane-type polymer with unsaturated groups in the polymer. Because of the unsaturation the polymer may be vulcanised with sulphur, the standard vulcanising agent of the rubber industry. This is a clear-cut example of a product being modified to suit the processor rather than that of a processor adapting himself to meet new products. Whereas Adiprene C has poor tensile strength when unfilled, the use of carbon black leads to appreciable reinforcement (as is the case with SBR and to some extent natural rubber. 

Spandex fibres, because of their higher modulus, tensile strength and resistance to oxidation, as well as their ability to be produced at finer deniers, have made severe inroads into the natural rubber latex thread market. They have also enabled lighter weight garments to be produced. Staple fibre blends with non-elastic fibres have also been introduced. 

Compatibility and various other properties such as morphology, crystalline behavior, structure, mechanical properties of natural rubber-polyethylene blends were investigated by Qin et al. [39]. Polyethylene-b-polyiso-prene acts as a successful compatibilizer here. Mechanical properties of the blends were improved upon the addition of the block copolymer (Table 12). The copolymer locates at the interface, and, thus, reduces the interfacial tension that is reflected in the mechanical properties. As the amount of graft copolymer increases, tensile strength and elongation at break increase and reach a leveling off. 

Neoprene vulcanizates have a high tensile strength, excellent oil resistance (better than natural rubber), and heat resistance. 

Carbon blacks are the most widely used fillers for elastomers, especially vulcanised natural rubber. They cause an improvement in stiffness, they increase the tensile strength, and they can also enhance the wear resistance. Other particulate fillers of an inorganic nature, such as metal oxides, carbonates, and silicates, generally do not prove to be nearly so effective as carbon black. This filler, which comes in various grades, is prepared by heat treatment of some sort of organic material, and comes in very small particle sizes, i.e. from 15 to 100 nm. These particles retain some chemical reactivity, and function in part by chemical reaction with the rubber molecules. They thus contribute to the crosslinking of the final material. 

Fig. 107.—Tensile strengths of natural rubber plotted against the degree of cross-linking with bis-azo vulcanizing agent (O), expressed as equivalent percent (pXlOO). Upper curve ( ) sample prepared using one equivalent percent of bis-azo compound plus monoreactive ethyl azodi-carboxylate for the total degrees of modification of the units indicated on the ordinate scale. (Flory, Rabjohn, and Shaffer.

Elastomers resulting from a series of organic reactions, e.g., a polyglycol ester of adipic acid reacted with an aromatic diisocyanate and cured with water, glycol or further reaction with an aromatic diisocyanate. These elastomers have high tensile strength, very high abrasion resistance, and lower hysteresis than natural rubber. A major use is in the manufacture of foamed polymers. 

Calculations of the elastic properties, the main tensions and tensile strength of natural rubber carried out without using the empirical adjusting parameters are in good agreement with the experimental data. 

Most polystyrene products are not homopolystyrene since the latter is relatively brittle with low impact and solvent resistance (Secs. 3-14b, 6-la). Various combinations of copolymerization and blending are used to improve the properties of polystyrene [Moore, 1989]. Copolymerization of styrene with 1,3-butadiene imparts sufficient flexibility to yield elastomeric products [styrene-1,3-butadiene rubbers (SBR)]. Most SBR rubbers (trade names Buna, GR-S, Philprene) are about 25% styrene-75% 1,3-butadiene copolymer produced by emulsion polymerization some are produced by anionic polymerization. About 2 billion pounds per year are produced in the United States. SBR is similar to natural rubber in tensile strength, has somewhat better ozone resistance and weatherability but has poorer resilience and greater heat buildup. SBR can be blended with oil (referred to as oil-extended SBR) to lower raw material costs without excessive loss of physical properties. SBR is also blended with other polymers to combine properties. The major use for SBR is in tires. Other uses include belting, hose, molded and extruded goods, flooring, shoe soles, coated fabrics, and electrical insulation. 

Carbon black increases the tensile strength of an SBR vulcanisate to its 10 to 20-fold (which would, otherwise, be very low), as well as its abrasion resistance. Natural rubber can, because of its stereospecific (cis) chain structure crystallise under strain, and, therefore, reach higher values of its tensile strength for a good abrasion resistance carbon black is also of importance with NR. 

The rubber compound usually requires an inert inoiganic filler and small particle size carbon particle for reinforcement. The rubber polymers vary in inherent tensile strength from very high in the case of natural mbber to almost nonexistent for some synthetic polymers, eg, SBR. The fillers most commonly used for mbber compounds include carbon black, day, calcium carbonate, silica, talc (qv), and several other inorganic fillers. 

Types of Latex Compounds. For comparison with dry-rubber compounds, some examples of various latex compounds and the physical properties of their vulcanizates are given in Table 23. Recipes of natural rubber latex compounds, including one without antioxidant, and data on tensile strength and elongation of sheets made from those, both before and after accelerated aging, are also listed. The effects of curing ingredients, accelerator, and antioxidant are also listed. Table 24 also includes similar data for an SBR latex compound. A phenolic antioxidant was used in all cases. 

Epoxidized natural rubber is still a strain crystallizing mbber and therefore retains the high tensile strength of natural rubber. However, as can be seen from Table 5, in other respects they have very little in common. The epoxidation renders a much higher damping mbber, a much-improved resistance to oil swelling (insofar as a 50 mol % modified natural mbber has similar oil resistance to a 34% nitrile mbber), and much-reduced air permeability. This latest form of modified natural mbber therefore widens the applications base of the natural material and enables it to seek markets hitherto the sole province of some specialty synthetic mbbers. 

---