Epoxidized natural rubber (ENR) is a modified natural rubber (NR) prepared by the epoxidation of NR. Dispersion of silica in the ENR nanocomposite is crucial for the performance, but there is not a definite relationship among ENR and silane coupling agent bis(γ-triethoxysilylpropyl) tetrasulfide (TESPT) and silica. In this work, ENR/silica with different amounts of TESPT nanocomposites (ENR/silica-xT) were prepared, and the structure and critical properties of ENR/silica-xT for tire tread applications were investigated and compared with NR/silica-TESPT nanocomposite. There is a competitive relationship between TESPT and epoxy groups on the rubber molecular chain in improving silica dispersion. Epoxy groups produce stronger filler-rubber interaction while TESPT provides more chemical crosslinking density. Accordingly, as the amount of TESPT increases, the tear strength, tensile strength, wet-skid resistance, abrasion resistance, as well as rolling resistance performance of ENR/silica-xT improves. The ENR/silica-6T demonstrates significant improvements compared to NR/silica-6T, with a 207 % enhancement in wet-skid resistance, a 29 % increase in abrasion resistance, and a 29 % reduction in rolling resistance. This work will be of significance in guiding the preparation of green tire tread.

中文翻译：

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双(γ-三乙氧基硅丙基)四硫化物改性二氧化硅/环氧化天然橡胶纳米复合材料轮胎胎面结构与性能


环氧化天然橡胶（ENR）是由NR环氧化制备的改性天然橡胶（NR）。二氧化硅在ENR纳米复合材料中的分散对其性能至关重要，但ENR与硅烷偶联剂双(γ-三乙氧基甲硅烷基丙基)四硫化物(TESPT)和二氧化硅之间没有明确的关系。在这项工作中，制备了含有不同量 TESPT 纳米复合材料的 ENR/二氧化硅（ENR/二氧化硅-xT），研究了用于轮胎胎面应用的 ENR/二氧化硅-xT 的结构和关键性能，并与 NR/二氧化硅-TESPT 纳米复合材料进行了比较。 TESPT与橡胶分子链上的环氧基团在改善白炭黑分散性方面存在竞争关系。环氧基团产生更强的填料-橡胶相互作用，而 TESPT 提供更高的化学交联密度。因此，随着TESPT用量的增加，ENR/silica-xT的撕裂强度、拉伸强度、抗湿滑性、耐磨性以及滚动阻力性能提高。与 NR/silica-6T 相比，ENR/silica-6T 具有显着改进，抗湿滑性提高了 207%，耐磨性提高了 29%，滚动阻力降低了 29%。该工作对于指导生胎胎面的制备具有重要意义。