Thailand Japan Student Science Fair 2015 P_CHM39

Seeding Innovations through Fostering Thailand Japan Youth Friendship

Improved Mechanical Properties product is traditionally as raw material for

severally applications such as tires, which
of Natural Rubber by Fillers reached about 70% of the total consumption of
From Waste Biomass NR. Natural rubber is a material that is
renewable, so the use in a commercial area is
Ajcharawadee Changpanao 1, Sasitorn being developed [1]. NR exhibits outstanding
Wiangtab1, Noottama Wattananusit1 properties such as green strength and tensile
and Surasuk Boontima1* strength because it can crystallize spontaneously
when it is strained. However, some properties of
Princess Chulabhorn Science High School Loei, natural rubber such as modulus, hardness and
Loei, 42110, Thailand abrasion resistance need to be improved for some
specific applications [2]. To broaden the
* [email protected] applications of elastomeric materials, one of the
simple and economical methods is to incorporate
rigid filler particles, such as carbon black, silica,
Abstract calcium carbonate and clay, into the deformable
rubber matrix. This process provides a high cost
Due to unstable properties of natural of final products. However, the continued
rubber (NR), the modification of their properties demand for newer lower cost, low weight and
are necessary to improve. Mechanical properties environmentally friendly reinforcing fillers still
of NR can be developed by reinforcement with poses a big challenge to the rubber industries [3].
carbon black, silica, calcium carbonate particles. Very recently the concept of waste biomass
This process provides a high cost of final fillers especially with the inclusion of small
products. Therefore, using of low cost filler from particle has drawn the attention of many
natural resource is one alternative to reduce cost researchers. This work designated to improve
NR products. This research investigates effect of mechanical properties of NR based on mixture of
content of waste biomass fillers from natural and NR and waste biomass fillers, rice husk ash,
artificial sources such as rice husk ash, activated activated carbon from rubber wood sawdust
carbon from rubber wood sawdust and eggshell and eggshell powder to obtained crepe rubber are
powder with size about 100 mesh. The content of final products. The method is additional of three
filler 5, 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 phr are mixed with types fillers and investigates effect of size and
NR then the compounds are crepe rubber to content of three types of fillers enhance
obtained final products. Based on the results, mechanical properties of NR.
three types of fillers enhance tensile properties
with increasing of fillers contents. The NR
reinforced show higher tensile properties. Tensile
properties of samples showed the better on all Materials and Methods
content of fillers added. Tensile strength,
modulus properties and energy at break with Waste biomass filers preparation
found to be rice husk ash filler (NR/RHA) Waste biomass filers were prepared
containing 40 phr has the maximum, elongation from waste of the agricultural industrials in
at break containing 30 phr has the maximum. Loei province (Thailand). Rice husk ash was
Comparison efficiency of fillers content added, prepared by washed with water to remove
rice husk ash is higher than eggshell powder any foreign material. HCl solution of 0.4 M
(NR/ES) and activated carbon (NR/AC),
was prepared then 100 g cleaned husk was
respectively.
mixed in 1 l of prepared acid solution and
Keywords: Natural Rubber, Mechanical heat at 100105 C for 3045 min. After the
properties, Waste Biomass. reaction, the acid was completely removed
from the husk by washing with tap water. It
was then dried in an oven at 110 C for 35
Introduction h in oven. The treated husk burned in an
electric furnace at 600 C for 6 h [4-5].
Thailand is the first largest producer of
natural rubber (NR) in the world. The use of the

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 Activated carbon was prepared from
rubber wood sawdust, 5 M ZnCl2 solution is
allowed to soak with the sawdust overnight,
so that reagents are fully adsorbed into the
raw material. This is to ensure that the
impregnated material is heated to furnace in
ambient temperature to 950 C for 5 h and
step down to ambient temperature. Around 7
to 8 washings are required to remove all
ZnCl2 from the carbon. Finally, the carbon is
washed with 0.1 M sodium hydroxide
solution and later washed thoroughly with
Fig.1. Effect of filler types and contents on
distilled water. The product is dried in hot air tensile properties of NR/RHA, NR/AC and
oven for 4 to 5 h at 105 C [4-5]. NR/ES.
Eggshell powder sample was prepared
by washed with water to remove any foreign Elongation at break properties also vary
material. The product is dried in hot air oven with contents of filler and can be showed in
for 6 h at 105 C and reduce its size by ball Figure 2. NR/RHA Mixture system with having
mill and blenders, respectively. the best properties of elongation at break
(1531%) at filler content 30 phr, and it decreased
Samples preparation for tensile testing at the higher filler contents.
NR latex containing 45% dry rubber
content was obtained from the rubber
plantation of agriculture in Loei province
(Thailand) and used as the raw rubber. Added
content of rice husk ash fillers (NR/RHA) are 5,
10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 phr in natural rubber latex,
activated carbon filler (NR/AC) and Eggshell
powder filler (NR/ES) were to similar of content.
The mixture was cast in a stainless steel tray and
stirred gently for 30 min in order to achieve good
dispersion. Then, added 2.5% acetic acid are 2
phr and continuous stirred gently to obtained
crepe rubber are final products. Mechanical Fig. 2. Effect of filler types and contents on
properties measured are tensile properties, tested elongation at break properties of
were tensile strength, elongation at break, NR/RHA, NR/AC and NR/ES
Modulus and energy at break by using a
Monsanto Moving Die Rheometer (MDR 2000) Modulus properties were better on all
according to ASTM method D638 [4-5]. content of filler added, showed in figure 3. The
NR/RHA composite containing 40 phr has the
maximum Modulus properties. The energy at
Results and Discussion brake purpose with the energy absorption per
cross sectional area of the sample, can be
Comparison of tensile strength with
NR/RHA, NR/AC and NR/ES can be seen in calculated from peak area of the stress-strain
Figure 1. The mixed system was better on all curve, showed in figure 4 [6]. The energy at
content of filler added. The NR/RHA composite brake of NR/RHA were better on all content of
containing 40 phr has the maximum tensile fillers added, 40 phr has the maximum. NR/AC
strength as expected. and NR/ES were found to be Increased slightly.

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 Thailand Japan Student Science Fair 2015 P_CHM39
Seeding Innovations through Fostering Thailand Japan Youth Friendship

Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the
Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science
and Department of Agricultural Engineering,
Faculty of Engineering Khon Kaen University
and for providing research facilities. The funding
was supported from Princess Chulabhorn
Science High School Loei, Thailand.

Fig. 3. Effect of filler types and contents on References

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[3.] J.L. Leblanc, Filled Polymers Science and
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[4.] Phrommedetch, Compatibility improve-
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European Journal of Scientific Research.
(2010) 43: 411-416.
Fig. 4. Energy at brake of NR/RHA, NR/AC and [5.] S. Joseph, and et al, Green composites
NR/ES from natural rubber and oil palm fiber:
physical and mechanical properties,
International Journal of Polymeric
Conclusions Materials. (2006) 92594.
[6.] Z.A.M. Ishak and A.A. Bakar, An
Mechanical properties, tensile strength,
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ash as fillers for epoxidized natural rubber
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(ENR), European Polymer Journal. (1995)
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of samples showed the better on all content of
fillers added. Tensile strength, modulus
properties and energy at break with found to be
NR/RHA containing 40 phr has the maximum,
elongation at break containing 30 phr has the
maximum. Three types of Biomass fillers from
the natural can be enhance tensile properties with
increasing of fillers contents added. The NR
reinforced show higher tensile properties and
showed the better on all content of fillers added.