Created By : D.W.W.

Sewwandi
Sp. Material Science and Technology
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 Characteristics of a filler that determine the
properties a filler will impart to a rubber
compound are,
1. Particle size
2. Surface are
3. Structure
4. Surface Activity

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1. Particle Size

 Size of the filler particle should not exceeds

the polymer interchange distance. If so it can
contribute to elastomer chain rupture on
flexing or stretching.

 According to the particle size , there are

generally three types.
Diluents, Semi-reinforcing , Reinforcing filler
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1. Particle Size
Particle Size (nm) Description

1000 – 10 000 Used primarily as diluents, no significant

effect on rubber propertes
100 - 1000 Semi reinforcing fillers ,Improve strength
and modulus properties
10 - 100 Reinforcing fillers , significantly improve
rubber properties

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Figure 01:- Classification of fillers
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2. Surface Area
 Particle size is generally the inverse of surface
area.

 For reinforcement, filler must make intimate

contact with elastomer chains

 Fillers with high surface are have more

contact are available , and thus have a higher
potential to reinforce the rubber chain.
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3. Structure
 Fillers effective shape is more importance
than the shape of an individual particle

 Reinforcing fillers such as Carbon black and

Precipitated Silica have generally round
primary particle but function as anisometric
acicular aregates.

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3. Structure
 The more aggregate deviate from a solid
spherical shape and the lager its size, the
higher its structure.

 The higher its structure, the greater its

reinforcing potential

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4. Surface Activity
 The specific activity of the filler surface per
cm2 of filler- elastomer interface is
determined by the physical and chemical
nature of the filler surface in relation to that
of the elastomer

 Non polar fillers are suitable to nonpolar

elastomer and polar filler are suitable with
polar elastomer.
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• Carbon Black

Figure 02:- Carbon black particles

available in different sized 10
Carbon Black

 This is a material of major significance to the

rubber industry.

 Carbon black is essentially elemental carbon

in the form of fine amorphous particles.

 Individual round carbon black particles form

aggregated, which may be clumps or chains of
various sizes and configurations.
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Carbon Black
Table 01:- Classification of Carbon black according to ASTM standards

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Carbon Black

 When Carbon Black is compounded with

rubbers, tensile strength, tear strength,
modulus and abrasion resistance are
increased

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Clays
 manufactured from naturally occurring hydrated
aluminium silicates.

 The particles of clays are hexagonal shaped platelets.

 The type of clays used by the rubber industry are

known to the clay industry as kaolin deposits of a
hydrous aluminium silicate, known as kaolinite.

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Clays
 Four types
1. Soft clays
2. Hard clays
3. Calcined clays
4. Treated Clays

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Clays
 Four types

1. Soft clays - semi-reinforcing, have lower

modulus, tensile strength and abrasion
resistance than hard clays

2. Hard clays - gives an expected higher level

of reinforcement than that found for the
soft clays
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Clays
3. Calcined clays - have been heat treated to
remove the combined water, improve the
electrical resistance of rubber compounds.

4. Treated Clays - Treatment of water-

washed hard china clays with silanes with
pendant amino or mercapto groups
enables them to give improved
reinforcement to rubber compounds.
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Silica

 Three specific types

1. Ground mineral silica
2. Precipitated silica
3. Fumed or pyrogenic silica

Figure 03:- Precipitated silica 18

Silica
1. ground mineral silica
◦ generally available below 300 mesh in size (5 m2/g)

◦ used as a cheap heat resistant filler for a variety of

compounds.

◦ There is no effect on the rate or state of cure

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2. precipitated silica

◦ Produced by the controlled neutralization of

dilute sodium silicate by either concentrate
sulfuric, hydrochloric, or carbonic acid.

◦ particle sizes in the range of 10-40 nm.

• The surface of silica is strongly polar in

nature
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2. precipitated silica

◦ has a chemically bound water content of 25% with

an additional level of 4-6% of adsorbed water.

◦ The use of additives to make the surface of

precipitated silica less hydrophilic and more
“rubberphilic” facilitates incorporation, dispersion,
and more intimate filler-elastomer contact during
compounding additives.

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2. Precipitated silica
◦ has a chemically bound water content of 25% with
an additional level of 4-6% of adsorbed water.

◦ The use of additives to make the surface of

precipitated silica less hydrophilic and more
“rubberphilic” facilitates incorporation, dispersion,
and more intimate filler-elastomer contact during
compounding additives.

◦ Addives uded -silanes, titanates and zirconates

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3. Fumed Silica
◦ prepared by burning volatile silicon compounds
such as silicon tetrachloride.

◦ contains less than 2% combined water and

generally no free water.

◦ not generally used in conventional rubber

compounding but find application with silicone
rubber.
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Calcium Carbonate
Several types available.
◦ Prepared Ground Limestone - particle size less than 100 mesh,
used as an inertdiluent and cheapening filler for rubber
compounds

• Ground Chalk, Whiting - white powder produced inparticle sizes

down to 30 nm, used as a diluent filler giving moderate hardness
and a reasonably high resilience at high loadings.

• Precipitated Whiting - particle sizes is available, from 20 μm to

50 nm, semi-reinforcing resulting in compounds with better
physical properties than with use of ground whiting
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Miscellaneous Fillers
◦ Magnesium Silicate (Talc)- prepared by grinding of naturally
occurring deposits, Very finely ground materials are used as
reinforcing fillers, Larger particle size products are used in
antistick applications.

• Mica Powder- Washed and ground, natural mica of 200-300

mesh acts as a laminar filler, giving good heat resistance and
low gas permeability.

• Titanium Dioxide- because of its cost, titanium dioxide is

usually only used as a whitening agent for rubber compounds.

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Miscellaneous Fillers
◦ Barium Sulphate - can be supplied ground directly from the
mineral, or from the precipitation of barium salts. ground
natural barium sulfate, is used in acid resistant compounds
because of its inertness, and as a high gravity filler where
weight is desired.

◦ Calcium Sulphate - Produced by grinding from gypsum, or

hydrated plaster of Paris

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1. Simpson,R.B., (ed.) Rubber Basics. Shropshire:Rapra
Technology Limited, 2002.

2. Ciullo,
P.A., Hewitt, N; The rubber formulary. New
York: Noyes publications, 1999.

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