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Continuous Preparation and Properties of Silica/Rubber Composite Using Serial Modular Mixing
Lin Zhu1, Yiren Pan2, Xiaolong Tian3
1School of Mechatronics Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266061, China. qustzhulin@163.com.
Materials (Basel, Switzerland)
|September 28, 2019
Summary
A novel serial modular continuous mixer enhances silica/rubber composite preparation for tire treads. This innovative mixing process improves silica dispersion and silanization, leading to superior mechanical and dynamic properties in rubber vulcanizates.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Polymer Chemistry
- Mechanical Engineering
Background:
- High-performance silica/rubber composites are crucial for tire tread applications, particularly in semi-steel radial tires.
- Efficient and controlled mixing is essential for optimizing silica dispersion and silanization reactions within the rubber matrix.
- Existing mixing methods may not provide sufficient control over reaction kinetics and filler dispersion.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and investigate a serial modular continuous mixer for efficient preparation of silica/rubber composites.
- To analyze the mechanism of serial modular continuous mixing and its impact on silica dispersion and silanization.
- To evaluate the performance enhancement of silica/rubber vulcanizates produced by the serial mixing process compared to traditional methods.
Main Methods:
- Design of a serial modular continuous mixer based on modular functionalization principles.
- Utilizing synchronous four-wing serrated rotors and reverse meshing reaction mixing twin-rotors for enhanced shear and elongation flow.
- Employing cooling visualization experiments to investigate dispersion and silanization reaction degree within the mixing zones.
- Conducting comparative experiments between serial mixing and two-stage mixing techniques.
Main Results:
- The serial modular continuous mixer effectively controlled the accuracy of the silanization reaction due to its modular structure and serial process.
- Improved silica dispersion and enhanced silanization reaction degree were observed, attributed to the specific rotor designs and mixing flows.
- Comparative analysis demonstrated that the serial mixing process comprehensively improved the dispersion, mechanical properties, and dynamic mechanical properties of the silica/rubber vulcanizate.
Conclusions:
- The designed serial modular continuous mixer offers an efficient method for preparing high-performance silica/rubber composites.
- The study validates the effectiveness of the serial mixing approach in optimizing silica dispersion and silanization for advanced tire materials.
- This technology provides a significant advancement in rubber compounding for demanding applications like tire treads.
