Abstract
To both the producer of natural rubber latex and the manufacturer of latex goods, the stability of Hevea latex is one of its most important properties. Two aspects of this important property are the mechanical stability and the chemical stability. The former is measured by the sensitivity of latex to mechanical agitation, the latter by the sensitivity to addition of ionic material. Although there is no clear relation known to exist between these two stabilities, the electrical charge on the rubber particles is considered to be important in either case. Since electrophoretic mobility determinations furnish one of the most direct methods for studying the charge on colloidal particles such as those in rubber latex, the effect of seasonal and clonal variations, latex aging, ionic strength, pH, and the presence of added materials on the electrical mobility of fresh Hevea latex was studied. At the same time the mechanical stability of many latexes was measured in order to determine what correlation exists between mobility and mechanical stability.