Processing, cure characteristics, and mechanical properties of EPDM rubber
containing ground EPDM vulcanizate of known composition were studied. Moone
y viscosity increases and Mooney scorch time decreases by the addition of t
he ground vulcanizate. At higher loadings of the ground rubber, the maximum
rheometric torque decreases. On addition of ground waste, stress-strain pr
operties and tear resistance increase, whereas heat buildup marginally incr
eases, resilience marginally decreases, low-strain modulus remains constant
, and abrasion resistance decreases. The interplay between the filler effec
t of the ground EPDM and the crosslink density changes of the EPDM matrix i
s believed to be the reason for the variation in mechanical properties. It
is believed that sulfur migration occurs from the raw EPDM matrix (R-EPDM)
to the ground waste EPDM (W-EPDM) particle while accelerator migration occu
rs from W-EPDM to R-EPDM. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.