What is rubber vulcanization?

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Synthetic or natural substance with elasticity properties, electrical insulating characteristics and water resistance is called rubber. Vulcanization of such a substance through reactions involving certain chemical elements or under the influence of ionizing radiation leads to the formation of rubber.

How did rubber come about?

The chronicle of the appearance of rubber in the countries of rubber Europe began when Columbus in 1493 brought outlandish treasures from the new continent. Among them was an amazingly bouncy ball, which was made by the local natives from the milky sap of the hevea tree. The Indians called this juice "kauchu" (from "kau" - a tree, "chu" - tears, cry) and used it in ritual ceremonies. The name stuck at the Spanish royal court. However, in Europe, the existence of unusual material was forgotten until the 18th century.

General interest in rubber arose only after the French navigator Ch. Condamine in 1738 presented to scientists from the Paris Academysciences a certain elastic material, samples of products from it, its description and extraction methods. Sh. Condamine brought these things from an expedition to South America. There, the natives made various household items from the resin of special trees. This material is called "rubber", from lat. resina - "resin". It was from that time that the search for ways to use this substance began.

What is rubber?

However, there is little in common between the name resina and the concept under which we perceive this material today. After all, tree resin is just a raw material for rubber.

Vulcanization of rubber makes it possible to significantly improve its quality, make it more elastic, strong and durable. It is this process that makes it possible to obtain many varieties of rubber for technical, technological and domestic purposes.

The value of rubber

Today, rubber has received the most widespread use in the production of rubber. Modern industry produces various types for automobile, aviation, bicycle tires. It is used in the manufacture of various seals for detachable elements in hydraulic, pneumatic and vacuum devices.

The product obtained in the process of vulcanization of rubber with sulfur and other chemical elements is used for electrical insulation, in the production of medical and laboratory instruments and devices. In addition, various rubbers are used for the manufacture of conveyor belts operating under heavy loads, anti-corrosion coatings for boilers and pipes,various types of glue and thin-walled high-strength small products. The synthesis of artificial rubber made it possible to create some types of solid rocket fuel, where this material plays the role of fuel.

What is rubber vulcanization and what does it do?

The vulcanization process involves mixing rubber, sulfur and other substances in the required proportions. They are heat treated. When rubber is heated with a sulfur agent, the molecules of this substance are bonded to each other by sulfur bonds. Some of their groups form a single three-dimensional spatial grid.

Rubber contains a large amount of polyisoprene hydrocarbon (C5H8)n, proteins, amino acids, fatty acids, some metal s alts and other impurities.

In a molecule of natural rubber, up to 40 thousand elementary units can be present, it does not dissolve in water, but it is perfectly split in organic solvents. However, if the rubber is able to almost completely dissolve in gasoline, then the rubber in it will only swell.

Vulcanization of this material helps reduce the plastic properties of rubber, optimizes the degree of its swelling and solubility in direct contact with organic solvents.

The rubber vulcanization process provides the resulting material with more durable properties. Rubber made using this technology is able to maintain elasticity over a wide temperature range. At the same time, process disturbances in the form of increased sulfur additionlead to the appearance of hardness of the material and the loss of elastic abilities. The result is a completely different substance, which is called ebonite. Before the advent of modern plastics, ebonite was considered one of the best insulating materials.

Alternative methods

Nevertheless, science, as you know, does not stand still. Today, other vulcanizing agents are known, but sulfur still remains the highest priority. To accelerate the vulcanization of rubber, 2-mercaptobenzthiazole and some of its derivatives are used. Alternative techniques include ionizing radiation using certain organic peroxides.

Usually, in any type of vulcanization, a mixture of rubber and various additives is used as the feedstock, giving the rubber the required properties or improving its quality. The addition of fillers such as carbon black and chalk helps reduce the cost of the resulting material.

As a result of the technological process, the rubber vulcanization product acquires high strength and good elasticity. That is why various types of natural and synthetic rubbers are used as raw materials for the manufacture of rubber.

Prospects for further development

Thanks to the development of synthetic rubber production technologies, rubber production is no longer completely dependent on natural material. However, modern technology has not displaced the potential of a natural resource. To date, the sharethe consumption of natural rubber for industrial purposes is about 30%.

The unique qualities of a natural resource make rubber irreplaceable. It is necessary in the production of large-sized rubber products, for example, in the manufacture of tires for special equipment. The most famous tire manufacturers in the world use mixtures of natural and synthetic rubbers in their technologies. That is why the largest percentage of the use of natural raw materials falls on the tire sector of the industry.