In this study, a series of basalt fiber (BF)/acrylonitrile–butadiene rubber (NBR) composites with various BF contents were prepared and evaluated. The effects of the BF content, thermal aging, and friction condition on tribological properties of the composites were the primary focus. The tribological performances of the composites were evaluated by DIN abrasion, Akron abrasion, and high‐speed block‐on‐ring tests, respectively. The results showed that with an increase in the BF content, for the DIN and Akron abrasion tests, the wear loss increased due to insufficient interactions between the BFs and the NBR matrix, whereas for the block‐on‐ring friction, both the friction coefficient and the wear loss of the composites decreased attributed to the effect of BF on transfer film formation on the polished counterpart surface. The thermal aging enhanced the wear resistance of the composites for all three friction conditions by improving the crosslinking density of the NBR matrix. POLYM. COMPOS., 40:630–637, 2019. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers

The effects of various coupling agents on the characteristics and properties of a natural rubber (NR)/styrene–butadiene rubber (SBR) matrix and its adhesion to continuous basalt fiber (CBF) cords were studied. Four types of silane‐based and two types of titanate‐based coupling agents were added separately to the rubber matrix during the mixing process. The processability of the rubber compounds and the mechanical and tension fatigue properties of the vulcanizates were evaluated. The static and dynamic adhesion between the CBF cord/rubber matrices were investigated using the H pull‐out test and an elastomer testing system, respectively. The results showed that the effects of the coupling agent were controlled by its chemical structure, and it was found that the addition of (3‐aminopropyl)triethoxysilane was the most effective for enhancing the interfacial fatigue properties, due to the combined improvements of the initial adhesion, interfacial stress states, and the fatigue property of the rubber matrix. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019, 136, 47098.

The relationships between the structure of the resorcinol-formaldehyde-latex (RFL) layer, static adhesion, and interfacial fatigue properties between the RFL-coated continuous basalt fiber (CBF) cord and a rubber matrix were studied using films prepared from RFL systems with various formulas and H samples prepared with RFL-coated CBF cord and NR/SBR matrix. Thermomechanical analysis and tensile testing of the RFL films were carried out using a dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA). The H pull-out force and fatigue properties were tested using a universal testing machine and an MTS, respectively. The interfacial fatigue life of the RFL-coated CBF cord/rubber samples exhibited different variation regularity from the variation of the H pull-out force as F/R and L/RF changed. The static adhesion reflected the connection strength between the cord and the rubber matrix, whereas the characteristics and the properties of the RFL layer played a decisive role in determining the damage rate of the adhesion. V C 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017, 134, 44353.

No abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of heat and moisture on the characteristics and tensile properties of resorcinol-formaldehyde-latex (RFL)-coated rayon cords and their adhesion to the natural rubber (NR)/styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) matrix. The water absorption ratio, shrinking percentage, breaking force, and elongation at break of the cords, which were treated under various temperature-humidity conditions, were tested, and an attenuated total reflection (ATR)-Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was used to investigate the chemical changes of the outer RFL layer. The static adhesion was investigated by an H pull-out test, and the evolution of the adhesive properties of the RFL-coated rayon cord/rubber matrix was tracked by an elastomer testing system. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) was employed to observe the interfacial fracture caused by both H pull out and fatigue. The results of this investigation show that the moisture absorption significantly affects the characteristics and the mechanical properties of rayon cords. The chemical state of the RFL layer and the static adhesion of the cord/rubber matrix were not obviously affected, but the interfacial fatigue life was extended due to the decrease of the load in the second of three fatigue stages, which was caused by a reduction in the modulus of the rayon cords.

In this study, samples were prepared with resorcinol-formaldehyde-latex (RFL)-coated continuous basalt fiber (CBF) cords and a natural rubber (NR)/styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) matrix for interfacial fatigue tests under periodic radial loading conducted using a De Mattia Rubber Flexometer. The effects of the RFL formula on the interfacial fatigue behavior, including the fatigue life and the evolution of residual adhesion strength, were the focus of this work. The fatigue behavior was compared with that under axial loading. The results showed that under radial loading, the residual adhesion strength of the samples remained higher than that under axial loading, and the evolution of adhesion was divided into three stages. The adhesion improvement in the second stage was due to further cocrosslinking between the rubber matrix and the latex in the RFL layer, and the duration of the second stage was determined by the amount of reactive latex in the RFL layer.