Quantification of different contributions to dissipation in elastomer nanoparticle composites

Publication date: 24 February 2017
Source:Polymer, Volume 111
Author(s): Sriharish M. Nagaraja, Anas Mujtaba, Mario Beiner
We present an approach to quantify different contributions to dissipation in elastomer nanoparticle composites based on strain sweeps. A modified Kraus equation is successfully used to approximate the loss modulus depending on strain amplitude G″γ measured at different temperatures. For natural rubber composites containing >10 vol% carbon black or >3 vol% carbon nanotubes two different contributions to dissipation due to (i) breaking and (ii) deformation of glassy rubber bridges in the filler network are identified. Filler fraction and temperature-dependent trends support physical pictures considering that glassy rubber bridges are responsible for the visco-elasticity of the filler network. Constant extra contributions to dissipation are associated with the bulk-like fraction of the elastomer matrix or filler network independent effects. The achieved understanding should be very important for the optimization of elastomer nanoparticle composites for special applications like tire treads.

Graphical abstract

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