Determination of Effective Crosslink Density in Silicone Rubber

Abstract

Abstract As a result of the investigations reported here, a simple and precise method was evised to measure the compression-deflection of solvent-swollen silicone rubber. The method was found to be reliable, and the resultant data were used to calculate effective crosslink densities of solid and cellular silicone rubber compounds. Empirical equations were derived relating compression and deflection to effective crosslinking of solid and cellular silicone rubber swollen in toluene. The weak swelling action of MEK precludes the derivation of empirical relationships between compression, deflection, and effective cross-linking of the rubber. The investigation further showed that toluene is a better and more useful swelling agent than methyl ethyl ketone (MEK). The volume swelling ratios for toluene and MEK were determined. Toluene was found to be about 1.4 times more effective as a swelling agent than MEK. Limited laboratory physical test data show a reasonable correlation to νe/Vr data. (More testing will be required to establish definite relationships.) This investigation also showed that the method employed here for crosslinking determinations is suitable for cellular rubber, since the data obtained from toluene-swollen specimens agrees quite well with theoretical calculations. Finally, the Flory-Huggins interaction parameters for toluene and MEK were determined.