Optimizing natural rubber blends for examination gloves: Vacuum radiation for mechanical strength and solvent barrier

Natural rubber (NR) is emblematic of sustainability compared to synthetic rubber. However, the tradition of adding sulfur as a vulcanization ingredient results in the release of toxic substances and the potential for health issues. In this study, a feasible strategy was proposed to replace sulfur and discover a safe bulk modification process for NR films. The results have shown that the NR particle size was disintegrated to below 10 nm by gamma irradiation. High tension strength up to 24.45 MPa was observed in the vulcanized NR blend film, which could be elongated up to 800% strain after exposure to an optimum dose of 14 kGy. In comparison to commercial NR latex and nitrile gloves, the vulcanized NR/ SIS films exhibited better chemical resistance ability against hexane, methanol, toluene, and acetone, as revealed by the permeation test. The appearance of amorphous regions and highly oriented NR crystallites was observed through transmission electron microscopy. Findings from this study propose the vacuum radiation strategy that can replace conventional vulcanization methods, resulting in NR films with high mechanical and barrier performance. Furthermore, the emission of toxic substances is reduced by this green process, making it practically useful for potential chemical-resistant examination glove applications. This manuscript introduces the ability of the vacuum radiation strategy as a green process that can replace conventional chemical vulcanization methods, resulting in natural rubber (NR)/poly(isoprene-b-styrene-b-isoprene) (SIS) films with high mechanical and barrier performance. The proposed method is an interesting, fast reaction time and energy-saving method because the samples packed in vacuum condition before the irradiation have produced vulcanized NR/SIS blend films. Moreover, this approach is greener than the conventional sulfur vulcanization method because it does not contain vulcanization agents.image