Rubber environments

DNPT is a free flowing light yellow powder. Alone DNPT decomposes at approximately 190 °C and produces 265 cm3 of gas per gram at STP. Nitrogen, nitrous oxide, various amines and water are produced. In a rubber environment the gas generation takes place within a range of 130-190 °C. A characteristic amine fishy odour is quite pronounced and can be offensive for some applications. DNPT is non-staining. 

Reddy C. and Quinn J. G. (1997) Environmental chemistry of benzothiazoles derived from rubber. Environ. Set Technol. 31, 2847-2853. 

When diene rubbers are exposed to ozone under stressed conditions cracks develop which are perpendicular to the direction of stress. Whilst ozone must react with unstressed rubber no cracking occurs in such circumstances nor when such rubber is subsequently stressed after removal of the ozone environment. For many years such rubbers were protected by waxes which bloomed on to the surface of the rubber to form an impermeable film. This was satisfactory for static applications but where the rubber was operating under dynamic conditions the wax layer became broken and hence less effective. 

Chemicals are ubiquitous as air, carbohydrates, enzymes, lipids, minerals, proteins, vitamins, water, and wood. Naturally occurring chemicals are supplemented by man-made substances. There are about 70000 chemicals in use with another 500-1000 added each year. Their properties have been harnessed to enhance the quality of life, e.g. cosmetics, detergents, energy fuels, explosives, fertilizers, foods and drinks, glass, metals, paints, paper, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, plastics, rubber, solvents, textiles thus chemicals are found in virtually all workplaces. Besides the benefits, chemicals also pose dangers to man and the environment. For example ... 

As well as measurement errors due to the pressure measurement instrument itself, other errors related to pressure measurements must be considered. In ventilation applications a frequently measured quantity is the duct static pressure. This is determined by drilling in the duct a hole or holes in which a metal tube is secured. The rubber tube of the manometer is attached to the metal tube, and the pressure difference between the hole and the environment or some other pressure is measured. 

Pyridine is a polar, stable, relatively unreactive liquid (bp 115°C) with a characteristic strong penetrating odor that is unpleasant to most people. It is miscible with both water and organic solvents. Pyridine was first isolated, like pyrrole, from bone pyrolysates. Its name is derived from the Greek for fire (pyr) and the suffix idine used to designate aromatic bases. Pyridine is used as a solvent, in addition to many other uses including products such as pharmaceuticals, vitamins, food flavorings, paints, dyes, rubber products, adhesives, insecticides, and herbicides. Pyridine can also be formed from the breakdown of many natural materials in the environment. 

The austenitic irons are superior to ordinary cast iron in their resistance to corrosion by a wide range of concentrations of hydrochloric acid at room temperature (Table 3.50). However, for practical uses where such factors as velocity, aeration and elevated temperatures have to be considered, the austenitic irons are mostly used in environments where the hydrochloric acid concentration is less than 0- 5%. Such environments occur in process streams encountered in the production and handling of chlorinated hydrocarbons, organic chlorides and chlorinated rubbers. 

Oil-base (including oil-modified alkyd resin) paint films should not be used in alkaline environments as the paint will deteriorate owing to saponification alkali-resistant coatings are provided by some cellulose ethers, e.g. ethyl cellulose, certain polyurethane, chlorinated rubber, epoxy, p.v.c./ p.v.a. copolymer, or acrylic-resin-based paints. In particular, aluminium and its alloys should be protected by alkali-resistant coatings owing to the detrimental effects of alkali on these metals. 

Polychloroprene and acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber compounds have satisfactory chemical resistance but, except for phosphoric acid, are not suitable for mineral acids at higher concentrations. However, they have good resistance to oils, acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber being the better, and so are often used in oil-contaminated aqueous environments. Generally, abrasion resistance is only fair. Normal maximum working temperature is about 100°C. Acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber ebonites are sometimes used especially where solvent contamination occurs, but are normally very brittle and so should be used with care. 

Radome Also called radiation dome. It is a cover for a microwave antenna used to protect the antenna from the environment on the ground, underwater, and in the air (aircraft nose cone, etc.). The dome is basically transparent to electromagnetic radiation and structurally strong. Different materials have been used such as wood, rubber-coated air-supported fabric, etc. The most popular is the use of glass fiber-TS polyester RPs. The shape of the dome, that is usually spherical, is designed not to interfere with the radiation. 

According to the AMC News article authorities summed up the report by pointing out that the incident was not the direct result of normal operations, but rather was the result of an unusual condition, and that the design and operating procedures were not unsafe when considered in the context of the total hazardous environment. The process in the nitration and purification building was operating normally when the rubber hose was introduced into the system. 

Finally, for HIPS, control of the rubber morphology in its broadest sense requires control of the reactor environment as well as the chemistry of the grafting reaction. Poorly agitated regions, for instance, can lead to visual and physical defects in the product. 

Polysaccharides such as starch and cellulose have been used as reinforcing agents in natural rubber. Both solution blending and dry mixing methods have been employed for the development of biocomposites and the performance compared with the composites obtained using carbon black. Dry mixing method is more economically viable and environment friendly. 

Biopolymers have diverse roles to play in the advancement of green nanotechnology. Nanosized derivatives of polysaccharides like starch and cellulose can be synthesized in bulk and can be used for the development of bionanocomposites. They can be promising substitutes of environment pollutant carbon black for reinforcement of rubbers even at higher loadings (upto SOphr) via commercially viable process. The combined effect of size reduction and organic modification improves filler-matrix adhesion and in turn the performance of polysaccharides. The study opens up a new and green alternative for reinforcement of rubbers. 

Among the many unusual properties that the arborescent architecture leads to, most notable is the discovery that block copolymers with a high MW dendritic (arborescent) polyisobutylene core and poly(para-methylstyrene) end blocks can manifest themselves either as a rubber, or as a plastic, depending on their environment (Figures 7.16 and 7.17). The behavior is thermally irreversible. 

K.P. Jones, Rubber and tbe environment, UNCTAD/IRSG Workshop, Manchester, pp. 8-19, June 13 1997. 

Braaz R, P Fischer, D Jendrossek (2004) Novel type of heme-dependent oxygenase catalyzes oxidative cleavage of rubber (poly-cw-l,4-isoprene). Appl Environ Microbiol 70 7388-7395. 

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