Static Flocculation in Carbon Black-filled Rubber: From Constrained Filler Motion to Polymer-driven Interfacial Reinforcement

Yu-Ge Wang; Jun-Lei Guan; Si-Yuan Chen; Yuan Yin; Hong-Guo Sun; Ya-Fang Zheng; Qian-Qian Gu; Zhao-Yan Sun

doi:10.1007/s10118-025-3391-x

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Static Flocculation in Carbon Black-filled Rubber: From Constrained Filler Motion to Polymer-driven Interfacial Reinforcement

RESEARCH ARTICLE | Updated：2025-09-26

- Static Flocculation in Carbon Black-filled Rubber: From Constrained Filler Motion to Polymer-driven Interfacial Reinforcement
- Chinese Journal of Polymer Science Vol. 43, Issue 10, Pages: 1917-1928(2025)
- Affiliations：
  
  a.State Key Laboratory of Polymer Science and Technology, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, China
  b.School of Applied Chemistry and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
  c.Center for Frontier Research & Technology, Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company, Hangzhou 310018, China
- Author bio：
  
  qqgu@mail.ustc.edu.cn (Q.Q.G.)
  zysun@ciac.ac.cn (Z.Y.S.)
- Funds：
- DOI：10.1007/s10118-025-3391-x
  CLC：
- Received：12 April 2025，
  
  Revised：2025-05-14，
  
  Accepted：29 May 2025，
  
  Online First：01 August 2025，
  
  Published：05 October 2025
- Accepted：
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Wang, Y. G.; Guan, J. L.; Chen, S. Y.; Yin, Y.; Sun, H. G.; Zheng, Y. F.; Gu, Q. Q.; Sun, Z. Y. Static flocculation in carbon black-filled rubber: from constrained filler motion to polymer-driven interfacial reinforcement. Chinese J. Polym. Sci. 2025, 43, 1917–1928

Yu-Ge Wang, Jun-Lei Guan, Si-Yuan Chen, et al. Static Flocculation in Carbon Black-filled Rubber: From Constrained Filler Motion to Polymer-driven Interfacial Reinforcement[J]. Chinese Journal of Polymer Science, 2025, 43(10): 1917-1928.
Wang, Y. G.; Guan, J. L.; Chen, S. Y.; Yin, Y.; Sun, H. G.; Zheng, Y. F.; Gu, Q. Q.; Sun, Z. Y. Static flocculation in carbon black-filled rubber: from constrained filler motion to polymer-driven interfacial reinforcement. Chinese J. Polym. Sci. 2025, 43, 1917–1928 DOI： 10.1007/s10118-025-3391-x.

Yu-Ge Wang, Jun-Lei Guan, Si-Yuan Chen, et al. Static Flocculation in Carbon Black-filled Rubber: From Constrained Filler Motion to Polymer-driven Interfacial Reinforcement[J]. Chinese Journal of Polymer Science, 2025, 43(10): 1917-1928. DOI： 10.1007/s10118-025-3391-x.

摘要

Mechanistic and rheological distinction between dynamic and static flocculation: Dynamic flocculation involves strain-induced rearrangement of filler networks through particle motion

whereas static flocculation arises from polymer-mediated interfacial enhancement through chain reorganization.

Abstract

The flocculation behavior of carbon black (CB)-filled isoprene rubber (IR) nanocomposites was systematically investigated under both dynamic and static conditions to unravel the distinct mechanisms governing filler network evolution. Under dynamic conditions

small oscillatory shear strains (0.1%) significantly enhanced filler particle motion

leading to pronounced agglomeration and a flocculation degree of about 4.3 MPa at 145 °C. In contrast

static flocculation exhibited a fundamentally different mechanism dominated by polymer chain dynamics

which is driven mainly by thermal activation. Radial distribution function (RDF) analysis of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images revealed a slight decrease (2 nm) in the interparticle distance peak after static annealing at 100 °C for 7 h

indicating localized motion of CB particles. However

the overall filler network remained stable

with no significant agglomeration observed. The increase in bound rubber content from about 23% to 28% with rising temperature further confirmed the dominant role of polymer chain adsorption and interfacial reinforcement in static flocculation. These findings highlight the critical influence of external strain on filler network formation and provide new insights into the polymer-dominated mechanism of static flocculation. The results offer practical guidance for optimizing the storage and processing of rubber nanocomposites

particularly in applications where static flocculation during prolonged storage is a concern.

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references

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