Effect of Storage Conditions on the Properties of Latex. I.

Working with ammonia-preserved natural-rubber latex, concentrated by centrifuging, the author shows that the slight fall in mechanical stability associated with the shipment of bulk supplies of latex can be explained by the fact that, during shipment, latex does not have access to the oxygen of the air. The mechanical stability of samples taken at the time of shipment increased in value when there was an appreciable air-space in the storage bottle, but fell when the bottle was full and air was excluded. These differences were accentuated when air was replaced by oxygen and was then possible to find marked differences not only in mechanical stability time but also in the volatile fat acid content of the latexes. The increase of volatile fat acid content of the samples stored in the absence of air was much greater than in the sample stored in the presence of oxygen. The fall of mechanical stability in the absence of air is ascribed to the formation of increasing quantities of salts, such as ammonium acetate. In the presence of oxygen, the rate of formation of salts of this type is very much less, and at the same time other changes take place which lead to a marked increase of mechanical stability.