ELASTOMERIC COMPOSITES WITH CARBON NANOTUBE FOR TIRE APPLICATIONS
In recent years, the motor vehicle market has sought to improve energy efficiency and vehicle performance. In this context, one option is to use tires with lower rolling resistance, related to energy loss due to hysteresis. The use of silica as a reinforcing filler, replacing traditional carbon black, allows these properties to be improved, but prevents the dissipation of electrostatic charges generated due to the friction of tires with the ground and friction of mechanical parts. An alternative is the incorporation of carbon nanoparticles as a conductive filler, since their adequate dispersion is a limiting factor for their use. This work aimed to develop an elastomeric compound containing multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) for application to tire treads, using an elastomeric mixture of natural rubbers (NR) and polybutadiene (BR) as a matrix. The nanoparticle was added to the elastomer by mechanical mixing, incorporated directly in powder form or through pre-dispersion (PD) in rubber. The nanoparticles were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM-FEG), Raman spectroscopy and their electrical conductivity was evaluated using the percolation curve. The influence of the addition of MWCNT and processing conditions on the properties of the final compound were evaluated through rheometry, determination of the Payne Effect, morphology and state of dispersion of the particles in the vulcanized compound, electrical conductivity, mechanical and dynamic-mechanical properties.