Mechanical properties of natural filling materials for eggshell, rice husk and kenaf in the production of natural rubber latex foam (NRLF) : Review

Abstract

Natural rubber latex (NRL) is a high potential material due to its abundant availability in nature. Natural rubber latex (NRL) processing by foaming method will produce natural rubber latex foam (NRLF). NRLF has good mechanical properties so that the resulting product has a high price. Therefore, the manufacture of NRLF using natural fillers such as eggshells, rice husks, and kenaf using the Dunlop method is expected to produce NRLF which has good mechanical properties and an affordable price. This study aims to study the mechanical properties of NRLF with eggshell, rice husk, and kenaf as filler. The results showed that increasing the load of eggshell and rice husk reduced the tensile strength at 2.5 phr and then increased with increasing loading of the filler, but enhancement of the amount of kenaf decreases its tensile strength. The elongation at break in the NRLF decreased with the increase in the amount of eggshell filler, rice husk, and kenaf. The modulus at 100% elongation (M100), hardness, and density at NRLF increase with increasing filler loading.