Effect of length and number of interlinking molecules on the strength of adhesion

The fracture energy G of an adhesive bond appears to be a product of two terms: G = G_O [1 + f(R, T)], where G_O is the intrinsic (chemical) strength of the interface and f(R, T), usually much larger than unity, reflects energy dissipated within the adherends at a crack speed R and temperature T. Values of G_O have been determined for interlinked sheets of an SBR elastomer by measuring the peel strength at low rates and high temperatures, and in the swollen state, to minimize internal losses. Both the density ΔN and molecular length L of interlinking molecules were varied. G_O was found to increase in proportion to (ΔN)L^3/2, in accord with the molecular theory of Lake and Thomas. As the peel rate was raised and the test temperature lowered, G was considerably increased by internal dissipative processes, becoming as much as 1000 × G_O near the glass transition. The loss function f(R, T) was found to depend somewhat upon the strand length L, being about twice as large at intermediate peel rates when L was increased by 40%. It also depended on the density ΔN of interlinking molecules, being about twice as large at high peel rates when the density of interlinks was reduced by a factor of six. Thus, the loss function f(R, T) is greater when the interlinking molecules are few and long, and it is lower when they are many and short. However, it is mainly governed by two parameters: peel rate R and temperature difference (T − T_g), in accord with a viscoelastic loss mechanism. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.