Vulcanization Modeling and Mechanism for Improved Tribological Performance of Styrene-Butadiene Rubber at the Atomic Sca
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Vulcanization Modeling and Mechanism for Improved Tribological Performance of Styrene‑Butadiene Rubber at the Atomic Scale Tao Zhang1 · Haibo Huang1 · Wei Li2 · Xiangdong Chang1 · Jun Cao1 · Licheng Hua1 Received: 31 March 2020 / Accepted: 19 July 2020 © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract A novel molecular model of vulcanized styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) was developed and experimentally verified to elucidate the enhanced tribological performance of vulcanized SBR over raw SBR. Vulcanization was modeled by cross- or self-linkages of sulfur (S) atoms with carbon (C) atoms in molecular chains. Frictional models were developed for vulcanized and raw styrene-butadiene rubber-ferrum (SBR-Fe) to study the atomic behavior at the frictional interface. The results at the atomic scale show considerable reductions in the coefficient of friction (COF) and the interfacial temperature of approximately 45.8% and 13.27% for the vulcanized SBR matrix, respectively, from those of raw SBR. In addition, the relative concentration (RC), the radial distribution function (RDF) and interaction energy of the vulcanized SBR are 21.61%, 6.68% and 60.12% lower than those of the raw SBR, respectively. The resulting decrease in the real contact area, adhesion and contact temperature at the interface can significantly improve the tribological properties of the vulcanized SBR over those of raw SBR. The results of this research study show how vulcanization can enhance the tribological properties of polymer composites at the atomic scale.
* Haibo Huang [email protected] 1
School of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics, Ningbo University, No. 818, Fenghua Road, Ningbo 315211, Zhejiang, China
College of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, Ningbo Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University, Ningbo 315211, China
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Tribology Letters
(2020) 68:83
Graphical Abstract
Keywords Rubber · Vulcanization · Tribological performance · Atomic scale
1 Introduction Rubber exhibits outstanding physico-mechanical properties and has therefore become one of the most widely used frictional materials in the automobile industry [1]. Treatment by sulfur (S) vulcanization of raw or synthetic rubber before application results in enhanced properties [2], including wear-resistance and heat-resisting ability. Therefore, vulcanization plays a significant role in controlling the rubber frictional properties during chemical treatment in rubber manufacturing. Although there is an abundance of studies on the tribological performance at the macroscopic scale, the mechanism for the enhancement of the tribological performance of vulcanized rubber is still not fully understood from a microcosmic perspective. The crosslinked structure induced by vulcanization is regarded as key to enhancing the rubber mechanical properties [3]. Sulfur is not simply dissolved or dispersed in vulcanized rubber but is chemically combined with molecular chains, mostly in the form of cros
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