A REVIEW OF VOLUME CHANGES IN RUBBERS: THE EFFECT OF STRETCHING

Abstract

AbstractElastomeric materials are subjected to significant change in volume during their deformation. This paper proposes to review the change in volume of stretched rubber and to highlight why volume change can be considered as a relevant mechanical quantity to characterize rubbery materials in terms of microstructure evolution. The first part of the present review examines experimental measurements of volume change reported from the end of the 19th century until now. The second part reports the models proposed to predict the change in volume of stretched rubbers. These are formulated for small deformations. Some of them account for the decrease in volume due to crystallization.