Poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) modified carbon nanoparticles by a thermo-mechanical technique and its reinforcement in natural rubber latex

A novel strategy of radical polymerization of sodium 4-styrenesulfonate (NASS) on the surface of carbon black (CB) in solid state is developed to prepare water-soluble carbon nanoparticles (PNASS-CBs). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (H-1 NMR) results show the presence of PNASS chains on the surface of CBs. The PNASS-CBs are homogenously distributed throughout water as nanoclusters with an average size of 90 nm when the PNASS-CB concentration is less than 10 wt% Furthermore, a high performance of natural rubber latex (NRL)/PNASS-CB composite is gained by latex compounding technique; the carbon nanoparticles are uniformly dispersed in the latex. When compared to the NRL/pristine CB composite (CB loading 30 phr) the tear strength, tensile strength and elongation at break of the obtained composite is increase by 185%, 130% and 120%, respectively. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.