Technically Classified Rubber—The Non-Rubber Content and the Measurement of Cure Rate

The nonrubber content of typical samples of all grades of technically classified rubber has been determined. It is found that the nonrubber content increases in the order: red, yellow, and blue. The chemical analyses performed to determine the nonrubber content were as follows: per cent ash, per cent nitrogen, per cent acetone extract, and per cent fatty acid. The pH of both a slurry of the ash and the aqueous digest indicates that blue rubber is more basic in these respects than are red and yellow rubbers. The measurement of the cure rate of these samples of technically classified rubber has been carried out by means of (1) conventional stress-strain testing, (2) the present ASTM method utilizing the Mooney viscometer, (3) the National Bureau of Standards strain test, (4) a new and more quantitative approach developed by Gee and coworkers, and (5) a utilization of the Mooney viscometer to determine two of the parameters of Gee's equation which gives the time dependence of modulus. All of these methods place the rubbers in the same relative order. The use of the viscometer to determine two of the parameters of Gee's equation was prompted by the degree of correlation between the rate parameter obtained with the present ASTM method and the rate constant k calculated by Gee's methods. As a result of a preliminary investigation as to the causes of viscosity increases at curing temperatures, it was found that, within limits of experimental error, all of the viscosity increase is due to the formation of a cross-linked network, with a linear relationship existing between viscosity increase ΔVc and modulus (at 100 per cent elongation) f. The results of a comparison of the rate constants obtained by the viscometer and by Gee's method indicate that for MBT mixes at 260° F there is good agreement between the methods. Statistical analysis shows that the samples employed for this study are significantly different in their rate of cure. The variance, range, and mean of some of the parameters obtained with the viscometer over a 10-week period are also given. It is suggested that the Mooney viscometer be employed to classify natural rubber according to its cure rate. If this is done, it will be necessary to define the degree of accuracy desired. To determine accurately the cure rate, it is necessary that the viscometer be used in conjunction with a press cure for the estimation of the parameter f∞. If it is not feasible to carry out press cures, an average value for f∞ can be assumed, and then only a short time test with the viscometer is required.