Carbon Black in Rubber Compounding
Abstract The mechanism of filler reinforcement has not yet been fully explained, but there is general agreement that an important, probably the most important, factor is the enormous surface development between the rubber and filler due to the fine particle size of the filler. Explanations have been attempted to show how small particles can cause reinforcement, but a complete theory of the phenomenon which accounts for all the facts is still awaited. Particle size oj carbon blacks.—A knowledge of this property is important in an understanding of the mechanism of reinforcement by carbon black. Because of the difficulty of distinguishing between ultimate particles and compact aggregates, and because the particles themselves are too small to be resolved in an ordinary microscope, the usual microscopical methods of measurement are inapplicable. Ultramicroscopical methods have been used with some success, the results obtained by the method of Gehman and Morris being probably the most reliable. These authors quote an average particle size of 61µµ for a sample of a standard rubber gas black (Micronex). The figures given for P-33 black, Shawinigan acetylene black and Thermatomic black are 159µµ, 130µµ and 1120µµ, respectively.