Vulcanized Rubber Composition with Phase-Separated Silica Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing polymer blends of butadiene rubber (BR) and styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) in tire compositions suffer from uneven silica distribution, leading to inadequate abrasion resistance, breaking resistance, and fuel efficiency due to localized silica distribution, which affects the uniform application of stress across the rubber and reduces the overall system's dispersibility.
Innovation Solution
A vulcanized rubber composition with a phase structure comprising incompatible SBR and BR phases, where silica is dispersed uniformly, with specific abundance and dispersion ratios, enhancing the abrasion resistance, fuel efficiency, and breaking resistance by optimizing the silica distribution within the SBR and BR phases.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If silica is added to polymer blend of butadiene rubber and styrene butadiene rubber, then fuel efficiency is improved, but silica distributes unevenly toward SBR phase, causing inadequate abrasion resistance and breaking resistance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating distinct phases with different silica concentrations. The SBR phase contains silica for fuel efficiency, while the BR phase is engineered to have sufficient silica distribution to provide abrasion and breaking resistance. This localized differentiation of silica distribution across phases resolves the contradiction between fuel efficiency and mechanical strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials by forming a phase-separated structure where SBR and BR exist as distinct incompatible phases within the rubber composition. This composite phase structure allows silica to be distributed differently in each phase, enabling simultaneous achievement of fuel efficiency (through silica in SBR phase) and mechanical strength (through silica in BR phase).
2Use of energy by moving object
If silica is localized in SBR phase, then fuel efficiency is enhanced, but stress is not applied uniformly to entire rubber, reducing overall system dispersibility
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality by allowing silica localization in the SBR phase while maintaining a separate BR phase with its own silica distribution. This creates locally optimized regions: the SBR phase with silica for fuel efficiency, and the BR phase with sufficient silica for uniform stress distribution and system dispersibility, thereby resolving the contradiction between fuel efficiency and compositional stability.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
AI summary
A vulcanized rubber composition assuring a well-balanced improvement of abrasion resistance, fuel efficiency and breaking resistance and a tire using a tread made of the vulcanized rubber composition are provided. The vulcanized rubber composition comprises a phase (SBR phase) comprising a styrene butadiene rubber being incompatible with a butadiene rubber and silica, and a phase (BR phase) comprising a butadiene rubber and silica, wherein the SBR phase and the BR phase are incompatible with each other, an abundance ratio α of silica in the SBR phase after vulcanization satisfies 0.3 ≤ α ≤ 0.7 (Relation 1), and a proportion β of the styrene butadiene rubber being incompatible with the butadiene rubber satisfies 0.4 ≤ β ≤ 0.8 (Relation 2), and the tire has a tread composed of the vulcanized rubber composition.