Development of degradation model of viscoelastic polymers during thermo-oxidative aging by Oberst beam testing

Abstract

Depending upon the environmental conditions such as oxygen, ozone, sunlight, thermal, UV and radiation, the characteristic of viscoelastic polymer would be degraded. It is well known that oxidative degradation is generally considered to be the most serious problem for rubbers at high temperature. The prediction of their performance requires the knowledge of their dynamic properties as a function of frequency and temperature. In order to identify the characteristic of viscoelastic polymer during thermooxidative ageing, Oberst beam testing would be adopted. The aim of this research project is to identify the degradation characteristics of viscoelastic polymer by ageing at different properties and time period.