What is rubber? properties & types | The Mechanical post
Rubber is one of the most widely used material and is present everywhere be it in your office in the form of rubber band or the swimming goggles. Originally, rubber comes from natural sources in the form of latex—grown from plants. However now-a-days synthetic rubbers have replaced the traditional ones. Now let’s see what is rubber made of :
Some people get confused between rubber and plastic, so to clear your doubts we have written a short and detailed post on Plastics. Coming back to the topic, Rubbers are highly elastic and resilient polymeric materials, which have numerous applications in various fields. Natural and synthetic rubbers are also known as elastomers.They are organic polymers which are have the capability of being subjected to huge amount of elastic strain without plastic yielding. They can be stretched upto 1000% of their original size.
Natural rubber is a vegetable product which is obtained from a variety of plants like Amazonian rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis), Dandelion etc. It has excellent flexure characteristics. It is used in automobile tubes and tyres, raincoat, floor mats, erasers etc.
Chloroprene ( Neoprene ) Rubber (CR).
Properties of Chloroprene ( Neoprene ) Rubber:
- Neoprene is resistant to oils, chemical, sunlight, weathering, aging and ozone is outstanding.
- It maintains its properties without any changes at temperature upto 120 degree celcius.
- Neoprene is a type of elastomer which does not support combustion, but it does get consumed by fire.
- Neoprene is chemically and structurally similar to natural rubber and its mechanical properties are also similar.
- It has excellent resistant to permeability by gases.
- It can be used for low voltage insulation, but is relatively low in dielectric strength.
Applications of Chloroprene ( Neoprene ) Rubber :
- They are used for heavy duty conveyor belts
- V-belts
- hose covers
- footware
- brake diaphragams
- motor mounts
- rolls and gaskets.
Styrene Butadiene Rubber (SBR) or Buna “S” or GR-S.
Properties of styrene butadine rubber :
- These are a type of elastomers.
- These are copolymers of butadiene and styrene.
- They are similar in many ways to the natural rubbers.
- They are widely used because of their low cost.
- They are non-oil resistant and are generally poor in chemical resistant.
- They have excellent impact and abrasion resistance.
- They are low in tensile strength , resilience, hytersis than natural rubber.
- They are used to manufacture auto and airplane tyres
- belting
- flooring
- wire and cable insulation
- footwear.
Also read:
Nitrile Butadiene Rubber (NBR).
Properties Nitrile Butadiene Rubber (NBR) :
- Nitrile elastomers are originally known as Buna “N”.
- These are the copolymers of acrylonitrile and butadiene.
- They are principally know for their outstanding resistance to oil and fuels at both normal and elevated temperatures.
- Their properties can be changed by varying the ratio of acrylonitrile and butadiene.
- Nitrile groups are low in most mechanical properties.
- Their tensile strength is low because they do not crystallize appreciably when stretched.
- Resilience of this material is roughly one third to one-half of natural rubber.
- Their electrical insulation quality varies from fair to poor.
Applications Nitrile Butadiene Rubber (NBR) :
- Low-acrylonitrile grades are used where good flexibility at low temperature is of primary importance.
- Medium range types which are the most widely used, find applications between these extremes.
- They are used for flexible couplings, printing blankets, rubber rollers and washing machine parts.
Silicones.
Properties of silicone :
- Low thermal conductivity.
- Low chemical reactivity ( chemical inert ).
- Low toxicity.
- Thermal stability ( constancy of properties over a wide temperature range of -100 to 250*C).
- The ability to repel water and form watertight seal.
- Does not stick to many substrates, but adheres very well to other, e.g. glass.
- Good electrical properties.
- Does not support microbiological growth.
Applications of silicone :
- Silicon are used in sealants
- adhesives
- lubricants
- medicine
- cooking utensils and thermal and electrical insulation
Some common forms include silicone oil, silicone grease, silicone rubber, silicone resin, and siliconecaulk.
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