Preparation and properties of the powder SBR composites filled with CNTs by spray drying process

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) filled powder styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) composites were prepared by spray drying of the suspension of CNTs in SBR latex. The powder was spherical like and uniform with an average diameter of less than 10 μm. The dispersion of CNTs in the rubber matrix was improved remarkably compared with that in the rubber composites obtained by the conventional mechanical mixing method. Further study about the effect of CNTs on the prepared SBR composites was performed by analyzing the vulcanization process of the SBR powder, thermal and mechanical properties of the vulcanized SBR composites. Differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) analysis indicated that the glass transition temperatures of SBR composites increased with the increasing ratio of CNTs. The vulcanization process showed that CNTs could decelerate the vulcanization of the SBR composites. Dynamic mechanical analysis indicated that the storage modulus of the composites was improved with the CNTs additions, especially when the CNTs addition exceeded 30 phr. Compared with pure SBR composites, the hardness, tensile and tear strengths of the composites filled with 60 phr CNTs enhanced 73.9%, 327.7% and 191.1%, respectively, which should be ascribed to the excellent mechanical properties of CNTs and uniform dispersion of CNTs in the rubber matrix.