Facile preparation of Cross-linked polyester composite rubber with excellent mechanical strength and high toughness by loading adjustable Low-cost clay

• Published in: Chemical engineering journal (Lausanne, Switzerland : 1996) Switzerland : 1996), 2023-01, Vol.455, p.140794, Article 140794
• Main Authors: Cong, Riyao, Wang, Muqun, Cao, Wenhao, Li, Zequan, Zhao, Shuangliang, Zhang, Zhichao, Gao, Yi, Liu, Ming, Zhang, Jianhui, Xie, Xiaoying, Liang, Shaojun, Gao, Wei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Ball clay; Butadiene phenyl polyester rubber; Environmental stability; Fatigue resistance; Synergistic strengthening
• ISSN: 1385-8947; 1873-3212
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cej.2022.140794

•A novel composite rubber was prepared facilely by cross-linking and compounding.•327.3% increase in tensile strength and 249.5% increase in toughness are obtained.•Great advantages in fatigue resistance and environmental stability are demonstrated.•The filler has good dispersibility and plasticity yet extremely low cost. Preparing polymeric elastomer materials with high strength, high toughness yet low energy dissipation has been a long-standing challenge. In this work, we report a dual synergistic strengthening strategy, based on building a vulcanized cross-linked network and regulating nano clay loading, for preparing a novel butyl phenyl polyester nano clay composite rubber. The molecular monomers 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate (HEA) and acrylonitrile (AN) were grafted on the rubber molecular chains, which facilitated the optimization of the crosslinking of the flexible segments. Meanwhile, a rigid unit-flexible chain segment network structure is constructed by regulating the grafting of functionally modified ball clay (BC) in the molecular chain segments. This cross-linking and filling structure provides maximum resistance to energy loss and reinforces the mechanical properties of the composite rubber. Experiments confirmed that BC strengthens the intermolecular forces through Si-O bond and Si-N bond on the macromolecular chain. Compared with raw rubber, the composite rubber with BC loading of 20 wt% has a 327.3% increase in tensile strength and a 249.5% increase in toughness, and presents huge advantages in fatigue resistance and environmental stability, yet the BC filler has extremely low cost. This work provides a new insight in creating rubber/nano clay composites with excellent mechanical strength and dynamic properties, showing high potential for industrialization.