On the potential of organoclay with respect to conventional fillers (carbon black,silica) for epoxidized natural rubber compatibilized natural rubber vulcanizates

Onium modified montmorillonite (organoclay) was compounded with natural rubber (NR) in an internal mixer and cured by using a conventional sulfuric system. Epoxidized natural rubber with 50 mol % epoxidation (ENR 50) in 10 parts per hundred rubber (phr) was used as a compatibilizer in this study. For comparison purposes, two commercial fillers: carbon black (grade N330) and silica (grade vulcasil‐S) were used. Cure characteristics were carried out on a Monsanto MDR2000 Rheometer. Organoclay filled vulcanizate showed the lowest values of torque maximum, torque minimum, scorch, and cure times. The kinetics of cure reaction showed organoclay could behave as a cocuring agent. The mechanical testing of the vulcanizates involved the determination of tensile and tear properties. The improvement of tensile strength, elongation at break, and tear properties in organoclay filled vulcanizate were significantly higher compared to silica and carbon black filled vulcanizates. In terms of reinforcing efficiency (RE), organoclay exhibited the highest stiffness followed by silica and carbon black filled vulcanizates. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that incorporation of various types of fillers has transformed the failure mechanism of the resulting NR vulcanizates compared to the gum vulcanizates. Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) revealed that the stiffness and molecular relaxation of NR vulcanizates are strongly affected by the filler–rubber interactions. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 94: 2438–2445, 2004     

Fly ash particles and precipitated silica as fillers in rubbers. I. Untreated fillers in natural rubber and styrene–butadiene rubber compounds

In this study, we investigated the effects of untreated precipitated silica (PSi) and fly ash silica (FASi) as fillers on the properties of natural rubber (NR) and styrene–butadiene rubber (SBR) compounds. The cure characteristics and the final properties of the NR and SBR compounds were considered separately and comparatively with regard to the effect of the loading of the fillers, which ranged from 0 to 80 phr. In the NR system, the cure time and minimum and maximum torques of the NR compounds progressively increased at PSi loadings of 30–75 phr. A relatively low cure time and low viscosity of the NR compounds were achieved throughout the FASi loadings used. The vulcanizate properties of the FASi‐filled vulcanizates appeared to be very similar to those of the PSi‐filled vulcanizates at silica contents of 0–30 phr. Above these concentrations, the properties of the PSi‐filled vulcanizates improved, whereas those of the FASi‐filled compounds remained the same. In the SBR system, the changing trends of all of the properties of the filled SBR vulcanizates were very similar to those of the filled NR vulcanizates, except for the tensile and tear strengths. For a given rubber matrix and silica content, the discrepancies in the results between PSi and FASi were associated with filler–filler interactions, filler particle size, and the amount of nonrubber in the vulcanizates. With the effect of the FASi particles on the mechanical properties of the NR and SBR vulcanizates considered, we recommend fly ash particles as a filler in NR at silica concentrations of 0–30 phr but not in SBR systems, except when improvement in the tensile and tear properties is required. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 93: 2119–2130, 2004     

Fly‐ash particles and precipitated silica as fillers in rubbers. II. Effects of silica content and Si69‐treatment in natural rubber/styrene–butadiene rubber vulcanizates

This article explored the possibility of using silica from fly‐ash particles as reinforcement in natural rubber/styrene–butadiene rubber (NR/SBR) vulcanizates. For a given silica content, the NR : SBR blend ratio of 1 : 1 (or 50 : 50 phr) exhibited the optimum mechanical properties for fly‐ash filled NR/SBR blend system. When using untreated silica from fly‐ash, the cure time and mechanical properties of the NR/SBR vulcanizates decreased with increasing silica content. The improvement of the mechanical properties was achieved by addition of Si69, the recommended dosage being 2.0 wt % of silica content. The optimum tensile strength of the silica filled NR/SBR vulcanizates was peaked at 10–20 phr silica contents. Most mechanical properties increased with thermal ageing. The addition of silica from fly‐ash in the NR/SBR vulcanizates was found to improve the elastic behavior, including compression set and resilience, as compared with that of commercial precipitated silica. Taking mechanical properties into account, the recommended dosage for the silica (FASi) content was 20 phr. For more effective reinforcement, the silica from fly‐ash particles had to be chemically treated with 2.0 wt % Si69. It was convincing that silica from fly‐ash particles could be used to replace commercial silica as reinforcement in NR/SBR vulcanizates for cost‐saving and environment benefits. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2007     

Norbornylized soybean oil as a sustainable new plasticizer for rubbers with hybrid fillers

Carbon black (CB) and precipitated silica are two major reinforcing fillers in rubbers. CB/silica hybrid filler is also widely used in rubbers to provide balanced properties. CB/silica‐hybrid‐filler‐filled styrene‐butadiene rubber (SBR) containing naphthenic oil (NO), soybean oil (SO) and norbornylized SO (NSO) was investigated. The swelling and curing behavior and rheological, mechanical, thermal, aging and dynamic properties were studied and compared with earlier reported data on CB‐ or silica‐filled SBR. NSO provides better scorch safety and faster cure than SO. Compared with NO, the addition of SO and NSO enhances the thermal stability and aging resistance of SBR vulcanizates. SBR/NSO vulcanizates with hybrid filler exhibit a higher tensile and tear strength than SBR/NO and SBR/SO vulcanizates. A synergistic effect in the abrasion resistance of vulcanizates containing the hybrid filler is observed. An increase of sulfur content in the hybrid‐filler‐filled SBR/NSO vulcanizates provides further improvement in abrasion resistance, wet traction and rolling resistance. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry     

Interfacial Interactions of Silica and Natural Rubber Enhanced by Hydroxyl Telechelic Natural Rubber as Interfacial Modifier

The incompatibility between hydrophilic silica and hydrophobic rubber is an important problem on using silica in nonpolar rubber. In this study, hydroxyl telechelic natural rubber (HTNR) that contains hydroxyl‐terminated groups was introduced into silica‐reinforced natural rubber (NR) in order to improve the bonding strength between rubber and silica. The properties of silica‐reinforced NR compounds and vulcanizates as a function of varying silica contents were evaluated at a fixed HTNR concentration at 8% wt/wt of silica content. The results show that the improvement of silica dispersion and decreasing of filler–filler interactions (Payne effect) were obtained in the NR compounds and vulcanizates with HTNR addition. The enhancements in tensile properties, crosslink density, abrasion resistance, heat build‐up, and thermal properties of the silica‐reinforced NR vulcanizates with added HTNR confirmed that HTNR performed good as interfacial modifier of silica. In the study, the optimum properties of silica‐reinforced NR vulcanizate were achieved at 30 phr silica with 2.4 phr HTNR. However, HTNR still showed poorer efficiency than the synergy between commercial silane coupling agent, bis [3‐(triethoxysilyl) propyl] tetrasulphide (TESPT) and diphenylguanidine (DPG) when used in silica‐reinforced NR vulcanizate. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 26:291–303, 2020. © 2019 Society of Plastics Engineers     

湿法白炭黑/天然橡胶母胶在全钢载重子午线轮胎带束层中的应用

采用湿法制备白炭黑/天然橡胶(NR)母胶,并分别采用NR标准配方和带束层粘合配方制备硫化胶,对硫化胶的性能进行研究,并与干法制备硫化胶性能进行对比.结果表明:湿法白炭黑/NR母胶中白炭黑均匀分散;当采用NR标准配方时,随着白炭黑用量的增大,胶料的门尼粘度和拉伸强度增大,填充10份高分散白炭黑硫化胶的定伸应力、拉伸强度和撕裂强度均明显高于易分散白炭黑硫化胶;当采用带束层粘合配方时,含湿法母胶胶料的加工性能较好,白炭黑用量为10份时,含湿法母胶硫化胶老化后钢丝帘线的粘合力保持率较大,粘合性能较好.     

A comparison of white rice husk ash and silica as fillers in ethylene–propylene–diene terpolymer vulcanizates

White rice husk ash (WRHA) and silica filled ethylene–propylene–diene terpolymer (EPDM) vulcanizates were prepared using a laboratory size two‐roll mill. Curing characteristics and physical properties of vulcanizates were studied with respect to the filler loading and filler type. Filler loading was varied from 0–50 parts per hundred resin (phr) at 10 phr intervals. Curing was carried out using a semi‐efficient vulcanization system in a Monsanto rheometer. Enhancement of the curing rate was observed with increasing WRHA loading, whereas the opposite trend was observed for silica‐filled vulcanizates. It was also indicated by the maximum torque and Mooney viscosity results that WRHA offers processing advantages over silica. Compared to the silica‐filled vulcanizates, the effect of filler loading on the physical properties of WRHA‐filled vulcanizates was not significant. According to these observations, WRHA could be used as a diluent filler for EPDM rubber, while silica can be used as a reinforcing filler. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry     

Guayule natural rubber composites: impact of fillers on their cure characteristics,dynamic and mechanical behavior

Guayule natural rubber (GNR) is an alternative resource of Hevea natural rubber (HNR) with 99.9% cis content in its 1,4-polyisoprene chemical backbone. In this study, compounds were formulated independently with four different reinforcing fillers such as carbon black (HAF), precipitated silica (VN3), fume silica (FUM) and nanofly ash (NFA) for the advancement of GNR based products. The cure characteristic, dynamic-mechanical performance and mechanical properties of GNR composite were studied with the reinforcing effect of different fillers on GNR. The cure characteristic results demonstrated that HAF and FUM silica filled compounds had more processing safety than VN3 and NFA filled compounds. Viscoelastic parameters of the vulcanizates were studied by dynamic mechanical analysis to estimate the glass transition characteristics and dynamic behavior. The higher storage modulus of FUM silica vulcanizate was an indication of superior filler reinforcing nature and improved rolling resistance than other filled systems. Additionally, HRTEM analysis also proved the better filler dispersion ability of FUM silica in GNR matrix. The mechanical properties were studied with a variation of each filler loading of 8, 16, and 32 phr in GNR vulcanizates. The tensile strength of each filled system increased with an increase of filler content from 8 to 32 phr. In comparison, FUM silica GNR vulcanizates exhibited better mechanical properties, therefore, it was considered as a better structure-performance composite than those of HAF, VN3 and NFA filled composites.

     

An investigation on the reinforcing potential of red earth as filler for natural rubber compounds

Locally sourced red earth (RE) was air‐dried, pulverized, and screened with a sieve of mesh size 75 nm. It was characterized in terms of its moisture content, loss on ignition, silica content, iodine adsorption number, oil absorption, pH, and metal oxide compositions. Natural rubber, standard Nigerian rubber used for this work was first characterized in terms of its dirt, ash and nitrogen contents, volatile matter, plasticity retention index, and Mooney viscosity. The RE was applied as filler wholly and in blends with standard carbon black, CB (N330) filler in the natural rubber compounding using efficient vulcanization system. The cure and the physicomechanical properties of the compounds and vulcanizates were, respectively, measured as function of filler loading. The results were compared with those of the standard carbon black (N330)‐filled natural rubber. It was found, that the RE‐filled natural rubber showed substantial reinforcement of the rubber, though inferior to carbon black (N330) filled vulcanizates, the tensile strength of the carbon black‐filled vulcanizates is about one half times that of the RE‐filled vulcanizates. The tensile properties of the RE‐filled vulcanizates improved markedly by blending the RE‐filler with the carbon black (N330). © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007     

Utilization of bowstring hemp fiber as a filler in natural rubber compounds

The cure characteristics and physicomechanical properties of natural rubber (standard Nigerian rubber) vulcanizates filled with the fiber of bowstring hemp (Sansevieria liberica) and carbon black were investigated. The results showed that the scorch and cure times decreased, whereas the maximum torques increased, with increasing filler loadings for both bowstring hemp fiber and carbon black filled vulcanizates. The tensile strength of both bowstring hemp fiber and carbon black filled vulcanizates increased to a maximum at a 40 phr filler concentration before decreasing. The elongation at break and rebound resilience decreased, whereas the modulus, specific gravity, abrasion resistance, and hardness increased, with increasing filler contents. The carbon black/natural rubber vulcanizates had higher tensile strength, which was about 1.5 times that of bowstring hemp fiber/natural rubber vulcanizates. This superiority in the tensile strength was probably due to the higher moisture content and larger particle size of the bowstring hemp fiber. However, the bowstring hemp fiber/natural rubber vulcanizates showed superior hardness. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

A new synergistic combination of safe accelerators for the improvement of physical properties in gum and filled vulcanizates

The synergistic activity of bis(diisopropyl) thiophosphoryl disulfide (DIPDIS) in the presence of dithio bis(N-β-OH ethyl piperazine) (DTEP), a safe amine-based accelerator, has been studied both in gum and filled stock vulcanization of NR. This study, concerning the effect of variation of sulfur concentration on the gum vulcanization of NR, reveals that, although modulus values of the vulcanizates increase with the level of sulfur, the tensile strength values attain a maximum at 1.5 phr sulfur for an equimolar (4.5:4.5) concentration of DIPDIS and DTEP. The concentration of accelertors was varied from 6 mmol to 18 mmol phr, keeping the molar ratio at 1:1. It was noticed that, although the torque and modulus values increased, the tensile strength values decreased after attaining a maximum at 12 mmolar concentration of DIPDIS and DTEP accelerators, when the sulfur concentration was fixed at 1.5 phr. The synergistic activity of DIPDIS-DTEP accelerated mixes is considered to arise from the generation of some intermediate accelerators that are governed by the proportion of accelerators, sulfur, filler, etc., present in the mix. Some investigations were also carried out to optimize the amount of carbon black at these fixed levels of accelerators and sulfur. A regarding tensile strength, it increased up to a loading of 50 phr carbon black, but beyond this level a gradual fall in the value was noticed. However, modulus, torque, and hardness increased with the concentration of carbon black. The optimum dispersion of carbon black for this system was obtained following Lee's method. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Fatigue resistance of silica‐filled natural rubber vulcanizates: comparative study of the effect of phosphorylated cardanol prepolymer and a silane coupling agent

The fatigue resistance of silica‐filled natural rubber (NR) mixes modified with phosphorylated cardanol prepolymer (PCP) was studied in comparison with similar compositions without PCP and with those containing the same dosage of a silane coupling agent (Si‐69). Considerable improvement in the fatigue resistance was observed for the PCP‐modified NR vulcanizate containing 20 phr of silica compared with the unmodified and Si‐69 modified vulcanizates. In addition, the tear strength of the PCP‐modified NR vulcanizate was higher than that of the others. Atomic force microscopy and the scanning electron microscopy of the vulcanizates showed better dispersion of silica particles in the NR matrix in the presence of PCP than in the unmodified and Si‐69‐modified NR vulcanizates. It is assumed that, at a dosage of 5 phr, PCP functions as a coupling agent between NR and the silica particles thereby improving the filler dispersion and consequently the mechanical properties of the vulcanizate. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry     

Design and analysis of single-factor experiments: Analysis of variance of the effect of rice husk ash and commercial fillers in NR compounds

Summary White rice husk ash (WRHA) and black rice husk ash (BRHA) were incorporated into natural rubber (NR) using a laboratory-sized two-roll mill. A conventional vulcanization system was used for curing and physical tests of the NR vulcanized involved determining of tensile and tear resistances. For comparison purposes, precipitated silica (Zeosil-175) and carbon black (N774) were used too. Using the analysis of variance of single-factor experiments, it can be concluded that: BRHA is non-reinforcing filler and its use is limited to 20 phr; WRHA is semi-reinforcing filler and the variation of filler loading (0 up to 50 phr) causes the maximum variation upon tensile strength of NR compounds; and, that although carbon black and silica are reinforcing fillers, a real reinforcement is reached up to 20 phr for tensile strength.     

Safe amine based zinc dithiocarbamates for the vulcanization of carbon black reinforced natural rubber

Binary combination of three safe amine based synthesized zinc dithiocarbamates (ZDC), namely zinc (N‐benzyl piperazino) dithiocarbamate (ZBPDC), zinc (N‐ethyl piperazino) dithiocarbamate (ZEPDC), and zinc (N‐phenyl piperazino) dithiocarbamate (ZPPDC) with mercapto benzothiazole disulfide (MBTS) as an effective accelerator system for the vulcanization of carbon black (N330, N550, and N774) filled natural rubber (NR) composites are studied. A comparison between the safe amine based zinc dithiocarbamates with the unsafe zinc dimethyl dithiocarbamate (ZDMC) in the light of mechanical and aging resistance behavior, introduces the non carcinogenic rubber additives in the filled vulcanization of rubber. Both accelerator and filler have the major importance for improving the mechanical as well as aging resistance behavior of the resultant vulcanizate. Variation in the filler and also filler to oil ratio are done to optimize the mechanical properties. SEM studies of different types of filler with different amounts show that N330 at 30 phr loading composites forms more homogeneity and less aggregated structures. Natural rubber systems with N330 carbon black show the best results with respect to tensile strength, but after the aging N774 carbon black filled system indicates better retention in the tensile strength. ZPPDC‐MBTS accelerated vulcanizate shows the better age resistance behavior than ZDMC‐MBTS accelerated vulcanizate. From both the points of age resistance and mechanical properties, ZBPDC‐MBTS accelerator system is the suitable substitute for ZDMC‐MBTS accelerated system in the filled vulcanization of natural rubber composites. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2014 , 131, 39988.     

A Comparative Study on Curing Characteristics,Mechanical Properties,Swelling Behavior,Thermal Stability,and Morphology of Feldspar and Silica in SMR L Vulcanizates

Abstract

Comparison studies on effects of feldspar and silica (Vulcasil C) as a filler in (SMR L grade natural rubber) vulcanizates on curing characteristics, mechanical properties, swelling behavior, thermal analysis, and morphology were examined. The incorporation of both fillers increases the scorch time, t ₂, and cure time, t ₉₀, of SMR L vulcanizates. At a similar filler loading, feldspar exhibited longer t ₂ and t ₉₀ but lower values of maximum torque, M_HR, and torque difference, M_HR–M_L than did silica-filled SMR L vulcanizates. For mechanical properties, both fillers were found to be effective in enhancing the tensile strength (up to 10 phr), tensile modulus, and hardness of the vulcanizates. However, feldspar-filled SMR L vulcanizates showed lower values of mechanical properties than did silica-filled SMR L vulcanizates. Swelling measurement indicates that swelling percentages of both fillers-filled SMR L vulcanizates decrease with increasing filler loading whereas silica shows a lower swelling percentage than feldspar-filled SMR L vulcanizates. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) on fracture surface of tensile samples showed poor filler–matrix adhesion for both fillers with increasing filler loading in the vulcanizates. However, feldspar-filled SMR L vulcanizates showed poorer filler–matrix adhesion than did silica-filled SMR L vulcanizates. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) results indicate that the feldspar-filled SMR L vulcanizates have higher thermal stability than do silica-filled SMR L vulcanizates.     

Effect of carbon black loading on curing characteristics and mechanical properties of waste tyre dust/carbon black hybrid filler filled natural rubber compounds

Curing characteristics, tensile properties, fatigue life, swelling behavior, and morphology of waste tire dust (WTD)/carbon black (CB) hybrid filler filled natural rubber (NR) compounds were studied. The WTD/CB hybrid filler filled NR compounds were compounded at 30 phr hybrid filler loading with increasing partial replacement of CB at 0, 10, 15, 20, and 30 phr. The curing characteristics such as scorch time, t₂ and cure time, t₉₀ decreased and increased with increment of CB loading in hybrid filler (30 phr content), respectively. Whereas maximum torque (M_HR) and minimum torque (M_L) increased with increasing CB loading. The tensile properties such as tensile strength, elongation at break, and tensile modulus of WTD/CB hybrid filler filled NR compounds showed steady increment as CB loading increased. The fatigue test showed that fatigue life increased with increment of CB loading. Rubber–filler interaction, Q_f/Q_g indicated that the NR compounds with the highest CB loading exhibited the highest rubber–filler interactions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs of tensile and fatigue fractured surfaces and rubber–filler interaction study supported the observed result on tensile properties and fatigue life. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Properties of natural rubber composites reinforced with silica or carbon black: influence of cure accelerator content and filler dispersion

Filler dispersion is a critical factor in determining the properties of filled rubber composites. Silica has a high density of silanol groups on the surface, which lead to strong filler–filler interactions and a poor filler dispersions. A cure accelerator, N‐tert‐butyl‐2‐benzothiazole sulfenamide (TBBS), was found to improve filler dispersion in silica‐filled natural rubber (NR) compounds. For the silica‐filled NR compounds without the silane coupling agent, the reversion ratio generally increased with increase in TBBS content, whereas those of the silica‐filled NR compounds containing the silane coupling agent and carbon black‐filled NR compounds decreased linearly. The tensile strength of the silica‐filled NR vulcanizate without the silane coupling agent increased as the TBBS content increased, whereas carbon black‐filled samples did not show a specific trend. The experimental results were explained by TBBS adsorption on the silica surface and the improvement of silica dispersion with the aid of TBBS. Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry     

白炭黑用量对氯丁橡胶/天然橡胶共混物性能的影响

研究了不同用量的沉淀法白炭黑填充质量比75/25的氯丁橡胶/天然橡胶共混物的物理机械性能、耐热老化性能和耐油性能,并用扫描电镜研究了共混物的结构。结果显示,白炭黑的加入改善了共混硫化物的拉伸强度、100%定伸应力和邵尔A硬度。压缩永久变形减小,黏度增大,从而导致在形变的过程中天然橡胶分散相占有率相对减少。相关性能也证明随着白炭黑用量的增加,硫化胶的耐热和耐油性能显著提高。     

Cardanol grafted natural rubber: A green substitute to natural rubber for enhancing silica filler dispersion

Natural rubber (NR) usage is wide‐spread from pencil erasers to aero tyres. Carbon black and silica are the most common reinforcing fillers in the rubber industries. Carbon black enhances the mechanical properties, while silica reduces the rolling resistance and enhances the wet grip characteristics. However, the dispersion of polar silica fillers in the nonpolar hydrocarbon rubbers like natural rubber is a serious issue to be resolved. In recent years, cardanol, an agricultural by‐product of the cashew industry is already established as a multifunctional additive in the rubber. The present study focuses on dispersion of silica filler in natural rubber grafted with cardanol (CGNR) and determination of its technical properties. The optimum cure time reduces and the cure rate increases for the CGNR vulcanizates as compared to that of the NR vulcanizates at all loadings of silica varying from 30 to 60 phr. The interaction between the phenolic moiety of cardanol and the siloxane as well as silanol functional groups present on the silica surface enhances the rubber–filler interaction which leads to better reinforcement. The crosslink density and bound rubber content are found to be higher for the silica reinforced CGNR vulcanizates. The physico‐mechanical properties of the silica reinforced CGNR vulcanizates are superior to those of the NR vulcanizates. The CGNR vulcanizates show lower compression set and lower abrasion loss. The dynamic‐mechanical properties exhibit less Payne effect for silica reinforced CGNR vulcanizates as compared to the NR vulcanizates. The transmission electron photomicrographs show uniform dispersion of silica filler in the CGNR matrix. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 43057.     

Effect of carbon black on properties of rubber nanocomposites

Polymer based nanocomposites were prepared using brominated poly(isobutylene‐co‐paramethylstyrene) (BIMS) rubber and octadecyl amine modified montmorillonite nanoclay. The effect of nature and loading of carbon black on these nanocomposites and the control BIMS was investigated thoroughly using X‐ray diffraction technique (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and mechanical properties. The addition of 4 parts of the modified nanoclay to 20 phr N550 carbon black filled samples increased the tensile strength by 53%. Out of the three different grades of carbon black (N330, N550, and N660), N550 showed the best effect of nanoclay. Optimum results were obtained with the 20 phr filler loading. For comparison, china clay and silica at the same loading were used. Fifty‐six and 46% improvements in tensile strength were achieved with 4 parts of nanoclay added to the silica and the china clay filled samples, respectively. N330 carbon black (20 parts) filled styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) based nanocomposite registered 20% higher tensile strength with 4 parts of the modified nanoclay. In all the above carbon black filled nanocomposites, the modulus was improved in the range of 30 to 125%. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 96: 443–451, 2005