Preparation and characterization of hydrophilic and water‐swellable elastomeric nanocomposites

Abstract

AbstractHighly polar and hydrophilic polymers; ethylene‐vinyl acetate (EVA), epichlorohydrin rubber (GECO), and polyethylene oxide (PEO) reinforced with fillers (carbon black (CB) and/or Silica) were used to prepare water‐swellable rubber nanocomposites. The study showed that although the high content of the GECO delayed vulcanization of the corresponding compounds, the sample filled with desired ratio of GECO/PEO/EVA or GPE, cross‐linked with peroxide exhibited the highest swelling performance of ⁓150%. The samples exhibited good re‐usability performance in the re‐swollen test, after drying. At prolonged water swelling, the tensile strength dropped drastically for compounds with high content of the GPE, due to weak filler‐matrix interactions. On the other hand, the incorporated GPE also increased the rebound resilience (%) property which is a key requirement in green tire fabrication. For example; peroxide cured sample coded SR3 (GPE‐15 phr CB) obtained ⁓30% resilience in non‐swollen state and ⁓53.5% after 1440 min of water‐swelling, which represents a dramatic development of over ⁓78% in rebound resilience. Thus, a proper balance between the GPE content, curing agent and the reinforcements may guarantee high water‐swelling performance and mechanical properties integrity for multifunctional applications such as wound healing, structural works, water collection from oil spillages, and for the development of water‐based sensors.