Study on the Effect of Filler Distribution and Polymer Phase Structure on Young’s Modulus in SBR/IR Rubber Blends using Finite Element Method Simulation

English Abstract

Study on the Effect of Filler Distribution and Polymer Phase Structure on Young’s Modulus in SBR/IR Rubber Blends using Finite Element Method Simulation

Ryota YAMAMOTO ^{*1 *2}

Ken ITOMI ^{*1 *2}

Sho KUBOUCHI ^{*1 *2}

Jun MORITA ^{*1 *2}

Takumi ADACHI ^{*1 *2}

Junji KAWAI ^*2

Tetsuo TOMINAGA ^*2

Lingyun LYU ^*3

Shin HORIUCHI ^*3

Hiroshi MORITA ^*4

^*1:Research Association of High-Throughput Design and Development for Advanced Functional Materials (ADMAT), Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan

^*2:JSR Corporation, Yokkaichi, Mie, Japan

^*3:Nanomaterials Research Institute, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan

^*4:Research Center for Computational Design of Advanced Functional Materials, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan

Nippon Gomu Kyokaishi,(2022),95(4),111-117 Original Paper in Japanese

In this paper, we report the results of a study using finite element method (FEM) simulation on the relationship between the morphology and physical properties of a filler-filled blended rubber. In the blended rubber of styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) and isoprene rubber (IR), the distributability of the silica fillers of both phases is different. As a result,when the blend ratio is changed, the effective filling amount of the filler in each rubber phase fluctuates, a difference in the reinforcing effect occurs, and the mechanical property value of the blended rubber changes discontinuously.
Furthermore, the phase separation structure of rubber changes in a complicated manner depending on the blend ratio. We expressed the input physical property value as a function of the distribution ratio of the filler, and devised a simulation model using a typical phase-separated structure model of the polymer blend. Using this model, we report the results of considering the relationship between filler dispersibility, phase structure, and Young’s modulus in blended rubber.

(Received on November 16, 2021)
(Accepted on February 24, 2022)

Keywords: Rubber Blends, Silica Filled Rubber, Filler Distribution, Finite Element Method Simulation, Young’s Modulus, Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy Tomography, EDX Mapping