Elastic Response of Filled and Unfilled Green Rubbers

Elastic responses on both pure natural rubber melts with different molecular weights and the rubber compounds mixed with various types of carbon blacks were investigated in this study. Furthermore, the degree of bound rubber was measured for various carbon blacks with different sizes and structures in order to study the interaction between the rubber and carbon blacks, and to study the correlation between the interaction and the elastic responses. As a loading amount of carbon black increased, the degree of bound rubber became higher, particularly far carbon-black particles with smaller sizes and higher structures. The elastic responses of the rubber melt filled with carbon black remarkably improved, as compared with those of unfilled rubber melt, specially in carbon black showing higher contents of bound rubber. Stress relaxation was more delayed and recovery behavior became more elastic, as the molecular weight of the rubber melt increased and the size of carbon-black particles was decreased. Permanent set became higher, as the molecular weight of the rubber melts decreased and the size of carbon-black particles increased.