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Evaluation of sustainable bituminous coal in elastomer applications

Austin Black 325 is a finely divided (below 325 mesh) powder produced from high carbon content, low volatility, sustainable bituminous coal. It has different properties compared to carbon black, including a lower specific gravity of 1.30 versus 1.80, a platy ground structure versus the reinforcing morphology of carbon black (figures 1 and 2), and a lower surface area in comparison to carbon black. Beyond its carbon composition, it is more similar in structure to platy fillers like clay and talc. The specific gravity comparison to other platy minerals (1.30 versus 2.50) provides economical and efficiency gains.

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ArticlesCarbon Black, Silica & Reinforcing MaterialsFeatured

Low PAH thermal carbon black to meet regulatory requirements

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are present as impurities in the raw materials used for rubber
and plastic compounding, particularly in carbon black and extender oils. PAHs have the potential to cause
adverse health effects, and while there is confirmation that these chemicals are not bioavailable once
compounded into goods, the in-place legislation regulates the PAHs in raw and/or final materials (refs. 1-
3). Given these regulatory requirements, it is advantageous to make low PAH products available to the industry; in particular, for consumer rubber goods.

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General considerations in failure analysis of rubber articles

Cutting edge technology is typically the focus of Rubber World’s technical articles. This somewhat more mundane feature will focus on the questions: What does one do when something breaks? What does one do when a product does not work as intended; and, more often than not, when someone needs an explanation yesterday? This article will discuss some general approaches and methodology applicable to failure analysis of rubber articles.

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Scalable rubber devulcanization manufacturing process developed

Rubbintec Inc. has developed and patented an innovative and scalable rubber “devulcanization” manufacturing process that cleanly and efficiently recovers high quality rubber from waste tires on an industrial scale. The recovered rubber can easily be revulcanized to make new rubber products, such as rubber mats, conveyor belts, footwear soles, rubber flooring, liners, membranes, field covers, railway sleeper pads, railway sleepers and tire treads, to name a few. A certain percentage of the devulcanized material can also be added to a tire manufacturer’s rubber mix, which would assist tire manufacturers to be part of the circular economy and to make their production more sustainable. The selling price is said to be less than virgin rubber. Together with its collaborator, Polylema, production of asphalt modifiers that can substitute for SBS, at a lower cost, will also take place.

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