Water Absorption Kinetics in Natural Rubber Composites Reinforced with Natural Fibers Processed by Electron Beam Irradiation.

Elena Manaila,Daniel Ighigeanu,Gabriela Craciun

doi:10.3390/polym12112437

Elena Manaila, Daniel Ighigeanu + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/polym12112437

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Abstract

Natural rubber composites reinforced with hemp, flax, and wood sawdust were obtained by irradiation at room temperature with an electron beam of 5.5 MeV in order to meet the actual need for new materials that are environmentally friendly and safe for human health. The natural fibers loading was between 5 and 20 phr and the processing doses were between 75 and 600 kGy. The kinetics of water absorption in these materials were studied. The water diffusion was analyzed through Fick’s law. The water absorption parameters (Qt and Qeq), diffusion parameters (k and n), diffusion coefficient (D), intrinsic diffusion coefficient (D*), sorption coefficient (S), and permeation coefficient (P) have depended on the fiber nature, amount used in blends, and irradiation dose. The obtained results showed that not in the case of each type of fiber used, the water absorption could be correlated with the specific cellulose and hemicellulose content, due to the changes induced by the electron beam.

Highlights

Natural rubber (NR) is a green and renewable industrial raw material, commonly used for manufacturing a wide variety of products ranging from medical devices and personal protective equipment to aircraft tires
The goal of the paper is to study the kinetics of water absorption, characteristic to hemp, flax, and wood sawdust used as reinforcement fillers for natural rubber vulcanized by electron beam irradiation
In order to obtain NR rubber eco-composites for industrial use, a number of disadvantages related to the use of fibers as filler must be overcome

Summary

Introduction

Natural rubber (NR) is a green and renewable industrial raw material, commonly used for manufacturing a wide variety of products ranging from medical devices and personal protective equipment to aircraft tires. The process takes place under the influence of time, temperature, and pressure, and, depending on them and the chosen vulcanization system, can be obtained cross-links as mono-, di-, tri-, or higher poly-sulfides. These compounds together with their reaction products are cytotoxic and responsible for many forms of allergies [3]. By the use of electron beam (EB) irradiation at room temperature in NR curing, many other technical advantages can be noticed: short processing time, cross-linking degree controlled trough the irradiation dose, no oxidative degeneration in polymers, high productivity and low material waste [6,7]

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