Studies in the Vulcanization of Rubber. III—Kinetics of Vulcanization of Rubber with Sulfur and Selenium
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Abstract A procedure for the determination of combined selenium in rubber has been evolved. The rate of combination of selenium and rubber has been ascertained under certain conditions and shown to follow a first-order equation. A minimum value for the molecular weight of rubber has been estimated. The formation of hard rubber under chosen experimental conditions has been put on a mathematical basis and has been shown to follow a second-order reaction. The soft- and hard-rubber reactions have been shown qualitatively to be successive reactions and the function of accelerators has been discussed. The theory explains the anomalous results obtained by previous investigators.