The influence of dewetting in filled elastomers on the changes of their mechanical properties

Summary The changes of mechanical properties of filled polymers and their dependence on deformation history are the subject of this paper. For most of filled polymers in practical use, the theory of linear viscoelasticity cannot be applied, even at small deformations. In this work, samples of glass bead filled polybutadiene rubber with different filler levels were investigated at small strains (<10%). The evolution of the relaxation modulus and Poisson's ratio was observed in cyclic experiments, which were also applied in inducing a defined deformation history for the succeeding relaxation experiments. In these experiments, the relaxation modulus and Poisson's ratio were measured as functions of time, with strain, strain rate, filler level and the preceeding deformation history as parameters. The results indicate dewetting as the main reason for the changes of the mechanical properties of the filled materials.The financial support of this work by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) is gratefully acknowledged.