Investigation of the Effect of Various Factors on the Shrinkage of Elastomeric Materials During Vulcanization

Abstract

The article presents the results of a study on the influence of structural and technological parameters on the shrinkage index during the vulcanization of elastomeric compositions based on commercial rubber compounds IRP–1347 and NO–68–1. The aim of the work was to determine the patterns of change in this parameter when varying the temperature, duration of the vulcanization process, and shape factor (F) of cylindrical rubber test samples.

It was shown that, regardless of the polymer base, both F and vulcanization temperature determine the magnitude and direction of product shrinkage. When F changes from 0,5 to 2,5, a significant increase in the degree of deviation of the fixed cylinder height was recorded, shifting toward an increase in size (from -1,0 to -10,5%) compared to the dimensions set by the mold cavity geometry.