• Elastomers and Composites
• /
• v.53 no.2
• /
• pp.39-47
• /
• 2018

Styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) is widely used in tire treads due to its excellent abrasion resistance, braking performance, and reasonable cost. Depending on the polymerization method, SBR is classified into solution-polymerized SBR (SSBR) and emulsion-polymerized SBR (ESBR). ESBR is less expensive and environmentally friendlier than SSBR because it uses water as a solvent. A higher molecular weight is also easier to obtain in ESBR, which has advantages in mechanical properties and tire performance. In ESBR polymerization, a surfactant is added to create an emulsion system with a hydrophobic monomer in the water phase. However, some amount of surfactant remains in the ESBR during coagulation, making the polymer chains in micelles clump together. As a result, it is well-known that residual surfactant adversely affects the physical properties of silica-filled ESBR compounds. However, researches about the effect of residual surfactant on the physical properties of ESBR are lacking. Therefore, in this study we compared the effects of remaining surfactant in ESBR on the mechanical properties of silica-filled and carbon black-filled compounds. The crosslinking density and filler-rubber interaction are also analyzed by using the Flory-Rehner theory and Kraus equation. In addition, the effects of surfactant on the mechanical properties and crosslinking density are compared with the effects of TDAE oil (a conventional processing aid).

• Elastomers and Composites
• /
• v.54 no.2
• /
• pp.97-104
• /
• 2019

Emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber silica wet masterbatch (ESBR silica WMB) technology was studied to develop highly filled and highly dispersed silica compounds, involving the preparation of a composite by co-coagulating the modified silica and the rubber latex in a liquid phase. Previous studies have shown that when manufacturing ESBR silica WMB/Butadiene silica dry masterbatch (BR silica DMB) blend compounds, preparing BR silica dry masterbatch and mixing it with ESBR silica WMB gave excellent results. However, WMB still has the problem of lower crosslink density due to residual surfactants. Therefore, in this study, tetrabenzylthiuram disulfide (TBzTD) was added instead of diphenyl guanidine (DPG) in the ESBR silica WMB/BR silica DMB blend compounds and sulfur/CBS contents were increased to evaluate their cure characteristics, crosslink densities, mechanical properties, and dynamic viscoelastic properties. TBzTD was found to be more effective in increasing the crosslink density and to produce superior properties compared to DPG. In addition, with increasing sulfur/CBS contents, mechanical properties and rolling resistance were enhanced due to high crosslink density, but the abrasion resistance was not significantly changed because of the toughness.

• Elastomers and Composites
• /
• v.52 no.4
• /
• pp.242-248
• /
• 2017

Wet masterbatch (WMB) technology is studied to develop high-content and highly disperse silica-filled compounds. This technology refers to the solidification of surface-modified silica with a rubber solution or latex. Until now, researchs based on styrene butadiene rubber (SBR)/silica WMB has been mainly performed. However, the blending of SBR/silica WMB and BR is not known and is currently under research and development. Therefore, in this study, the BR blending method suitable for emulsion (ESBR)/silica WMB is investigated by measuring their cure characteristics and the mechanical and dynamic viscoelastic properties. As a result, it was confirmed that the blending of ESBR/silica WMB and BR/silica dry masterbatch is most appropriate. However, it showed a disadvantage compared with the conventional mixing method, which was due to the surfactant remained and the sulfuric acid used as the coagulant.

• Elastomers and Composites
• /
• v.55 no.3
• /
• pp.167-175
• /
• 2020

Various studies have been conducted to improve silica dispersion of silica filled tire tread compounds; among them, silica wet masterbatch (WMB) technology is known to be suitable for manufacturing silica filled compounds that have high silica content and high dispersibility. Till now, the WMB study is focused on the natural rubber (NR) or emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber (ESBR) that does not have a silica-affinity functional group, and a study of NR or ESBR having a silica-affinity functional group is still not well known. Unlike the dry masterbatch technology, the WMB technology can solve the problems associated with the high Mooney viscosity when applied to silica-friendly rubber. However, a coagulant suitable for each functional group has not yet been determined. Therefore, in this study, different coagulant applied silica WMB was prepared by applying calcium chloride, sulfuric acid, acetic acid, and propionic acid by using a carboxyl group functionalized reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer ESBR. The evaluation of the WMB compounds revealed that the calcium chloride added WMB compound showed excellent silica dispersion, abrasion resistance, and rolling resistance.

• Elastomers and Composites
• /
• v.54 no.1
• /
• pp.54-60
• /
• 2019

The rapid development of the automobile industry is an important factor that led to the dramatic development of synthetic rubber. The tread part of tire that comes in direct contact with the road surface is related to the service life of the tire. Rubber compounds used in tire treads are often blended with SBR (styrene-butadiene rubber) and BR (butadiene rubber) to satisfy physical property requirements. However, when two or more kinds of rubber are blended, phase separation and silica dispersion problems may occur due to non-uniform mixing of the rubber. Therefore, in this study, we synthesized an SBR copolymer with the same composition as that of a typical SBR/BR blend compound by controlling butadiene content during ESBR (emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber) synthesis. Subsequently, silica filled compounds were manufactured using the synthesized ESBR, and their mechanical properties, dynamic viscoelasticity, and crosslinking density were compared with those of the SBR/BR blended compound. When the content of butadiene was increased in the silica filled compound, the cure rate accelerated due to an increased number of allylic positions, which typically exhibit higher reactivity. However, the T-2 compound with increased butadiene content by synthesis less likely to show an increase in crosslink density due to poor silica dispersion. In addition, the T-3 compound containing high cis BR content showed high crosslink density due to its monosulfide crosslinking structure. Because of the phase separation, SBR/BR blend compounds were easily broken and showed similar $M_{100%}$ and $M_{300%}$ values as those of other compounds despite their high crosslink density. However, the developed blend showed excellent abrasion resistance due to the high cis-1,4 butadiene content and low rolling resistance due to the high crosslink density.