• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.310-316
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• 2020

Terpene-modified phenolic resins were used to improve the tires wet traction related to the driving safety and also rolling resistance related to fuel efficiency. In this work, alpha-pinene, beta pinene, and delta limonene resins, which constitute different basic structures of terpene-modified phenolic resins, were individually added to the tread compounds of tires and their physical properties were compared with those of the alkyl phenol resin compounds. Alkyl phenolic resins showed no significant difference in tangent delta from terpene-modified phenolic resins at 0 ℃, which is related to wet traction, but showed higher tangent delta at 80 ℃, which is related to rolling resistance, indicating smaller fuel efficiency improvement effects. Among the terpene-modified phenolic resins, beta pinene one showed improved wet traction and fuel efficiency compared to those of other resins. Delta limonene resin showed the best wet traction improvement effect, and alkyl phenolic resins showed relatively high tensile strength and abrasion property. All terpene-modified resins exhibited better rolling resistance than those of alkyl phenolic ones so that they can be said to have better fuel efficiency improvement effects and also to improve other properties compared to those of blanks. Terpene-modified phenolic resins could be used when mixing tire compounds referring to the properties of the phenolic resins revealed in this work, which could result in preparing compounds with improved wet traction and rolling resistance.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.201-208
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• 2013

In this study, effect of different amounts of sulfur and vulcanization accelerators in the acrylonitrile styrene-butadiene rubber (AN-SBR)/silica compounds on the properties of tire tread compound were studied. As a result, cure rate and degree of cross-linking of the compounds were increased due to enhanced cross-linking reactivity by the increased amounts of sulfur and vulcanization accelerators. Also, abrasion resistance and the mechanical properties such as hardness and modulus of the compounds were improved by enhanced degree of cross-linking of the compounds. For the dynamic properties, tan ${\delta}$ value at $0^{\circ}C$ was increased due to the increase of glass transition temperature ($T_g$) by enhanced degree of cross-linking of the compound, and tan ${\delta}$ value at $60^{\circ}C$ was decreased. Initial cure time ($t_1$) showed the linear relationship with tan ${\delta}$ value at $60^{\circ}C$. This result is attributed that reduced initial cure time ($t_1$) of compounds by applying increased amount of curatives can form cross-linking in early stage of vulcanization that may suppress development of filler network. This result is verified by observation on the surface of annealed compounds using AFM (atomic force microscopy). Consequently, decreased initial cure time is considered a very important parameter to reduce tan ${\delta}$ at $60^{\circ}C$ through reduced re-agglomeration of silica particles.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.356-362
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• 1991

The physico-mechanical properties of NR/BR blend were measured, and the results were interpreted in terms of the crosslink density with cure system. The cure rate, maximum torque and crosslink density increase with the content and ratio of curative for cure system. Hardness, 300 % tensile modulus, rebound and wear resistance increase with crosslink density of the vulcanizate but heat build-up and tan $\delta$ at $60^{\circ}C$ decrease. It is expected that semi-EV(efficient vulcanization) cure system is appropriate for application in tire tread of truck/bus in which load bearing property is impotant.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.114-130
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• 2017

Enhancing the properties of rubber, such as the tensile strength, modulus, and wear abrasion, by the addition of carbon black and silica as fillers is very important for improving the performance of rubber products. In this review, we summarize the general features of 'the reinforcement of rubber by fillers' and the equations for representing the reinforcement phenomena. The rubber reinforcement was attributed to enhancement of the following: the rubber, bound rubber, formation of networks, and combination between rubber chains and silica followed by entanglement. The reinforcement capability of silica species with different surface and networked states demonstrated the importance of the connection between the silica particles and the rubber chains in achieving high reinforcement. The model involving combination followed by entanglement can provide a plausible explanation of the reinforcement of rubber by carbon black and silica because the combination facilitates the concentration of rubber chains near the filler particles, and entanglement of the rubber chains around the filler particles enforces the resistance against deformation and breakage of rubber compounds, resulting in high reinforcement.