Superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) can absorb and retain ten to thousand times their dry mass of water because of their three-dimensional hydrophilic structures. Conventional SAPs are mainly composed of poly(acrylic acid sodium salt) derived from petrochemicals. The present work is aimed at limiting the use of the petrochemical component by replacing it with a biomass-based material. First, the core-SAP was prepared via the terpolymerization of itaconic acid, vinylsulfonic acid, and cellulose, and the optimum conditions in terms of material input ratio were determined. Following this, the core- SAP was surface-crosslinked by esterification with butane diol to improve its liquid permeability and absorbency under load (AUL). The liquid permeability was measured according to the amount of 0.9 wt.% NaCl solution passing between the swollen SAP particles under a given pressure, and the AUL was estimated from the weight of this solution absorbed under 0.3 psi pressure.

Vehicle wiper blades are typically treated with chlorine to lower their friction coefficient with the windshield surface. In this study, a chlorinated, natural rubber (NR) vehicle wiper blade was characterized using a pyrolytic technique. Unchlorinated and chlorinated wiper blades were pyrolyzed and the pyrolysis products were analyzed using gas chromatography/ mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Besides isoprene and dipentene, the other principal pyrolysis products such as 1,5,8- p-menthatriene (MTT) and p,α-dimethylstyrene (DMS) were observed. The MTT and DMS ratios did not vary for the chlorinated nor unchlorinated samples when the entire rubber lip of the wiper blade was pyrolyzed. However, when only the lip surface of the wiper blade rubber was pyrolyzed (via scratching with a knife) the relative ratios of the chlorinated sample were much greater than those of the unchlorinated sample. As MTT is produced from the conjugated backbone of chlorinated NR that forms through HCl elimination during initial pyrolysis, and DMS is generated by the dehydrogenation of MTT, these two products could be used as markers for detecting chlorinated NR.

Novel flexible terpolymers with a reactive moiety were synthesized by coordination polymerization with a metallocene catalyst and a cocatalyst system. C2-symmetric rac-Et(Ind)2ZrCl2 and tri-iso-butylaluminum/dimethylanilinium tetrakis (pentafluorophenyl) borate were employed as the catalyst and cocatalyst, respectively. We synthesized reactive terpolymers consisting of ethylene, a high α-olefin content (1-hexene, 1-octene, 1-decene, and 1-dodecene), and divinylbenzene. The structure and composition of the terpolymers were characterized by 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance analysis. The catalytic activity, polymer yield, molecular weight, and molecular weight distribution were measured as functions of the chain length and high content of α-olefins. Furthermore, the thermal properties and crystallinity of the terpolymers were determined by differential scanning calorimetry and wide-angle X-ray scattering.

The long-term durability of an FKM O-ring used as parts of a hydrogen station was investigated by exposing it to high-pressure gaseous hydrogen for 1, 3, and 7 days at room temperature. Changes in its sealing force were subsequently measured at 150°C using intermittent compression stress relaxation (CSR). No changes in the tensile properties of FKM O-ring were observed, but its initial and overall sealing forces at 150°C significantly decreased with increasing exposure time to hydrogen gas. Microvoid formation in the FKM O-ring upon exposure to high-pressure hydrogen was minimized over time after the ring was exposed to atmospheric pressure at room temperature, which prevented changes in its tensile properties. However, applying heat accelerated FKM O-ring oxidation, which decreased its sealing force. These results indicated that identifying changes in the sealing force of rubber materials using intermittent CSR is not sufficient for monitoring changes in mechanical properties under high-pressure hydrogen atmospheres; however, it is suitable for evaluating the long-term durability of sealing materials for hydrogen station applications under similar conditions.

In this study, mesoporous hollow silica spheres were synthesized using a polystyrene core and cetyltriammonium chloride (CTACl) as a pore template, and a low-cost water glass instead of expensive tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as a precursor. In addition, the material was synthesized by varying the concentration of polystyrene. Later, the polystyrene core and CTACl were removed by firing in a high-temperature heat-treatment process. The synthesized product was analyzed by various methods, such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), and N2-sorption analysis. It was confirmed that the hollow silica sphere had a hexagonal structure with a Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific area of 1623㎡/g.

A calibration curve is needed to determine the SBR and BR blend ratio of SBR/BR blend rubber compounds using pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass chromatography (Py-GC/MS) or Py-GC. In general, a calibration curve is obtained using reference SBR/BR vulcanizates with various blend ratios. In this study, the calibration curves were obtained using reference samples made of rubber solutions and were compared to those plotted using the reference SBR/BR vulcanizates. Calibration curves using variations of 1,3-butadiene/styrene, 4-vinylcyclohexene (VCH)/styrene, 2-phenylpropene (PhP)/butadiene, PhP/VCH, 4-phenylcyclohexene (PhCH)/butadiene, and PhCH/VCH ratios with the BR content were examined for the suitability. We found that the calibration curves obtained using the mixed rubber solution references (1,3- butadiene/styrene and PhP/butadiene) could replace those constructed using the reference SBR/BR vulcanizates. The calibration curves of 1,3-butadiene/styrene and PhP/butadiene obtained using the raw references can be used for the determination of the SBR/BR blend ratios by applying some correction factors.

Highly aromatic (HA) oils are common processing aids used in tire tread compounds. However, they often bleed and evaporate from the vulcanizates during tire use. Thus, the mechanical and dynamical properties of the tire decrease. To overcome this problem, we investigated nonfunctionalized liquid butadiene rubber (LBR-305, Kuraray) and center-functionalized liquid butadiene rubber (C-LqBR), polymerized by anionic polymerization. In addition to the liquid butadiene rubbers, p-tert-octylphenol (P-Resin) and C5 hydrocarbon (H-Resin) tackifier resins, which can induce entanglement of rubber compounds, were researched as a processing aid to solve the bleeding problem. Liquid butadiene rubbers have significantly reduced extraction loss by crosslinking with the main rubber chain. They have also increased the abrasion resistance and showed similar or better mechanical and dynamical properties against HA oils. However, resin compounds did not show differences in extraction loss compared to HA oil compounds; instead, they showed increased wet traction.

In recent times, polymeric foams have been popularly used in various applications. To meet the demand for these applications, polymer foams with excellent mechanical and thermal properties are required. In particular, silicone foam has gained significant attention owing to its superior thermal properties and low density. In this study, the mechanical and thermal properties of silicone foams filled with wollastonite were investigated. A maximum tensile strength of 98.3 kPa was obtained by adding 15 phr of wollastonite. The specific gravity did not exhibit a marked difference up to 10 phr, but it increased substantially above 15 phr wollastonite. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that adding wollastonite to the silicone foam increased both the amount of residue and the thermal decomposition temperature. The morphologies of the silicone foams filled with wollastonite were observed by scanning electron microscopy.

To investigate the reinforcing effects of functional fillers in nitrile rubber (NBR) materials, high-structure carbon black (HS45), coated calcium carbonate (C-CaCO3), silica (200MP), and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were used as functional filler, and carbon black (SRF) as a common filler were used for oil-resistant rubber. The curing and mechanical properties of HS45-, 200MP-, and MWCNT-filled NBR compounds were improved compared to those of the SRF-filled NBR compound. The reinforcing effect also increased with a decrease in the particle size of the fillers. The CCaCO3- filled NBR compound exhibited no reinforcing effect with increasing filler concentration because of their large primary particle size (2 μm). The reinforcing behavior based on 100% modulus of the functional filler based NBR compounds was compared by using several predictive equation models. The reinforcing behavior of the C-CaCO3-filled NBR compound was in accordance with the Smallwood-Einstein equation whereas the 200MP- and MWCNT-filled NBR compounds fitted well with the modified Guth-Gold (m-Guth-Gold) equation. The SRF- and HS45-filled NBR compounds exhibited reinforcing behavior in accordance with the Guth-Gold and m-Guth-Gold equations, respectively, at a low filler content. However, the values of reinforcement parameter (100Mf/100Mu) of the SRF- and HS45-filled NBR compounds were higher than those determined by the predictive equation model at a high filler content. Because the chains of SRF composed of spherical filler particles are similarly changed to rod-like filler particles embedded in a rubber matrix and the reinforcement parameter rapidly increased with a high content of HS45, the higher-structured filler. The reinforcing effectiveness of the functional fillers was numerically evaluated on the basis of the effectiveness index (φSRF/φf) determined by the ratio of the volume fraction of the functional filler (φf) to that of the SRF filler (φSRF) at three unit of reinforcing parameter (100Mf/ 100Mu). On the basis of their effectiveness index, MWCNT-, 200MP-, and HS45-filled compounds showed higher reinforcing effectiveness of 420%, 70%, and 20% than that of SRF-filled compound, respectively whereas C-CaCO3-filled compound exhibited lower reinforcing effectiveness of -50% than that of SRF-filled compound.

This study focused on experiments with polyethylene glycol (PEG) and glycidyl methacrylate (GMA), which are functional additives for water-expandable rubber. Polychloroprene rubber (CR)/superabsorbent polymer (SAP) composites were prepared and their cure behaviors, mechanical properties, water absorption rates, and surface morphology were measured based on the functional additives applied. When PEG and GMA were applied to the composites, the water absorption rate increased-including the initial rate-compared to that measured when functional additives were not used. The results also show that PEG has a hydrophilic functional group, which allows it to absorb more water, and GMA acts as a coupling agent between CR and SAP. However, with the introduction of functional additives, the cure rate slowed down and the mechanical properties also decreased.