Waste ceramic dust activated by gamma radiation and coupling agents as reinforcement for nitrile rubber

Abstract

The effect of silicate load in waste ceramic dust on characteristics and performance of acrylonitrile butadiene rubber has been investigated. In order to enhance the interfacial adhesion between the rubber matrix and the filler, the latter was activated with two different types of coupling agents, vinyltriethoxysilane (SN) and maleic anhydride (MA), and then subjected to gamma rays at 100 kGy. Scanning electron microscopy, Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy, and X‐ray diffraction techniques were implemented to feature how the unmodified and modified waste ceramic dust were affected by the coupling agents. The effect of filler incorporation ratio on the physicomechanical and thermal properties of the rubber was studied. Mechanical properties, namely tensile strength, elongation at break, elastic modulus, and hardness, showed increases with both coupling agents. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 24:37–43, 2018. © 2015 Society of Plastics Engineers