Characterization of Snap-On Calf Nipple Product and Development of its Compound Formulation Based on Natural Rubber

Abstract

This research aimed to develop the formulation of natural rubber filled with carbon black, silica and calcium carbonate for rubber calf nipple application. The reverse engineering was performed on the calf nipple product to analyze the rubber type and component by using Soxhlet extraction, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) techniques. Furthermore, mechanical properties were examined to act as benchmark for the rubber compound design. The results showed that rubber component in the nipple product was natural rubber, whereas two filler types revealed as carbon black and calcium carbonate with 10 and 35 of the total weight. In addition, rubber nipple showed the hardness of 46±1 Shore A and tensile strength of 5.3±0.60 MPa. From the investigation of the properties of developed rubber compounds in this work, it was found that the mechanical properties depended on type and content of filler. The required mechanical properties of vulcanizates were achieved at 20 phr of carbon black (N330), 20 phr of silica and 120 phr of calcium carbonate.