Tensile Strength of Protein-free Natural Rubber and its Vulcanizate Soaked in Water

English Abstract

Tensile Strength of Protein-free Natural Rubber and its Vulcanizate Soaked in Water

Luu Thanh HUYEN ^*1

Chen Ao RAN ^*1

Yoshimasa YAMAMOTO ^*2

Seiichi KAWAHARA ^*1

^*1:Department of Materials Science and Technology, Nagaoka University of Technology, Nagaoka, Niigata, Japan

^*2:Department of Chemical Science and Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Tokyo College, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo, Japan

Nippon Gomu Kyokaishi,(2020),93(9),293-299 Original Paper in Japanese

Vulcanization, tensile strength and water-resistance of protein-free natural rubber (PFNR) were investigated in a viewpoint of application to a seal-product. The PFNR was prepared by incubation of high ammonia natural rubber (HANR) latex with urea, sodium dodecyl sulfate and acetone followed by washing with a centrifuge, twice. It was vulcanized with sulfur, zinc oxide, accelerator, stearic acid and anti-aging agent at 150 °C. Optimum vulcanization time and crosslink density were prolonged and lowered by removing proteins, respectively. The resulting vulcanized PFNR was characterized by attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR FT-IR) and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). After soaking in water, stress at break of vulcanized HANR decreased, whereas that of vulcanized PFNR did not. The PFNR in water was proved to be superior in the stress at break due to improvement of water-resistance that was a drawback of natural rubber.

(Received on December 13, 2019)
(Accepted on June 30, 2020)

Keywords: Protein-free Natural Rubber, Vulcanization, Water-resistance