Chemicals & Materials

Adhesives have been described as the diplomats of the rubber world, bringing materials together. Adhesion promoters help facilitate this process. To extend this metaphor, if adhesives are the diplomats, tackifier resins are the handshake that binds the agreement within rubber. These additives are generally medium molecular weight chemicals that are added to rubber compounds, altering their properties by imparting improved tack.

The efficient mixing of rubber compounds comes with many challenges. These include effectively blending the individual raw materials, which involves breaking down and blending different types of elastomers, adequately dispersing large fractions of fillers, oils and small weighments of chemicals in a relatively short time in the internal mixer. Once mixed, the compound then must be processed, e.g., extruded, calendered or molded to form the desired shape which is then vulcanized to produce the final product. The choice of the correct processing promotor will assist in these efforts. Certain promotors function primarily as dispersing agents, whereas others act more as lubricants to speed the mixed compound through the production process. Both types improve overall compound quality and production efficiency. Compound viscosity typically is also reduced. This article will focus on a number of processing promotors offered by Rhein Chemie and their effects on rubber compound quality and processability.

Fluoroelastomers (FKMs) were first introduced to market more than 50 years ago in response to performance needs in the aerospace industry. Their increased thermal stability and chemical resistance, and comparable mechanical properties relative to hydrocarbon rubber materials provided significant performance benefits. Not surprisingly, FKM compounds soon became widely adopted in seals and gaskets for many other applications across the automotive, oil and gas, semiconductor and pharmaceutical/ food processing industries, where long term durability and reliability in challenging environments was critical.