Thermal diffusivity of rubber compounds

During the vulcanisation process, rubber compounds are heated to temperatur es of similar to 200 degrees C and then cooled. An increase in temperature occurs in rubber tyres during use as a result of heat produced by repeated deformation. This temperature increase can be so high that it can cause tyr e destruction. From this point of view, knowledge of thermal diffusivity da ta of rubber compounds and reinforced rubber is very important. Despite the rmal diffusivity being a crucial value, which determines the rate of heatin g or cooling of solid bodies, only limited data of this kind are available in the literature for elastomers. A new method, developed especially for de termining the thermal diffusivity of thick fibre composite materials and re inforced rubber, has been used to measure the thermal diffusivity of rubber compounds. Both the content and the type of rubber and carbon black determ ine the thermal diffusivity. The content of other components, however, has a very limited influence on this parameter. PRC/1588.