Effect of modified nanosilica on mechanical properties of EPDM/NBR blend-nanocomposites

The modified nanosilica (mNS), acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber (NBR), and ethylene-propylene-diene monomer (EPDM) nanocomposite was created. The 70/30 EPDM/NBR and 0–10 parts per hundred rubber (phr) of mNS were mixed on a two-roll mill. The impact of mNS on compression set, mole percent uptake (MPU), cure characteristics (scorch and optimal cure time, cure rate index, maximum torque, minimum torque, and torque difference) and mechanical properties (tensile and tear strength, hardness, elongation at break, rebound resilience, and abrasion resistance) of the composites were investigated and discussed. The surface morphology of tensile-fractured EPDM/NBR rubber-mNS was investigated using FESEM. The material's tensile strength, 100% modulus, tear strength, hardness, and abrasion resistance were all improved with an increase in mNS concentration, but rebound resilience and elongation at break were decreased.