Effect of Temperature and Pressure on Oxygen Pressure Aging
Abstract An increase in the temperature of the oxygen pressure test from 70° to 80° C greatly increases the rate of aging of rubber vulcanizates. The temperature coefficients of aging rate for the six stocks tested vary between 1.63 and 3.48. The state of cure markedly affects the temperature coefficient of some stocks. It is obvious that no change in the specification from 70° to 80° C should be made without first determining the temperature coefficient of the stock involved. A decrease in the pressure of the oxygen pressure test decreases the rate of aging, but the rate is not proportional to pressure. The relative rates of aging between 0.5 and 300 pounds oxygen pressure for the stocks tested vary between 1.09 and 4.87 for the normal cures, and between 1.50 and 6.74 for the longer cures. The state of cure markedly affects the change in rate of aging with change in pressure. The data show that changes in the pressure of the oxygen pressure test must be accompanied by a revision of all aging specifications, which will involve an individual study of each stock and every cure of each stock, since no correlation between stocks seems to exist for the changes in rate of aging that occur with changes in pressure.