A positron annihilation study of carbon black and carbon-black-filled polybutadiene

Studies have been made on positron lifetimes in carbon blacks and carbon black filled polybutadiene. The results for the carbon blacks can be interpreted with the aid of the theoretical results of Brandt and Paulin: Phys. Rev. B5, 2430 (1972) and show that while positron annihilation occurs principally from a bound state, diffusion in the carbon black is extremely small. A numerical upper limit on the diffusion coefficient has been obtained. The data from the rubber is discussed with the aid of a specially developed extension of the previous theory. Here one finds that whereas the variations in the long-component intensity with carbon black loading can be very satisfactorily explained, there is again no evidence for any diffusion effects in the rubber, and an upper limit can be placed on the diffusion coefficient here also. Indeed the variation in the long-component intensity with particle size goes the opposite way to what one would expect if diffusion were dominant. This effect is attributed to the increase in the amount of bound rubber as the particle size is reduced, and the consequent increase in the number of annihilation sites.