Curing kinetics of NBR filled with coconut flour

The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the effect of the incorporation of 20 phr of coconut wood-flour of different particle sizes on the vulcanization kinetics of Nitrile Rubber (NBR) by means of rheometry and differential scanning calorimetry. The vulcanization kinetics results suggest that there might exist agglomerates of small particles (< 300 mu m), which interfere with the curing reaction of the NBR. The reaction orders corresponding to the autocatalytic reaction show an increase with the extent of the reaction and with the rise on temperature. A good correlation of the vulcanization kinetics was obtained employing the generic model that involves constants associated to the reaction mechanisms, which in turn depend on the components present in the initial mix and on the autocatalytic reaction. The Osawa and Kissinger equations reproduce in a similar way the vulcanization kinetics of the compounds. POLYM. COMPOS., 32: 529-536, 2011. (C) 2011 Society of Plastics Engineers