Rheological Behaviour of Short Carbon Fiber Filled Thermoplastic Elastomeric Blends of Natural Rubber and High Density Polyethylene

Abstract

A rheological study of the thermoplastic elastomeric blends of natural rubber and high density polyethylene filled with short carbon fibers has been performed with a Monsanto Processability Tester. Carbon fibers hav ing 6 mm length were used in the range of 0-30 phr. The rheological studies were carried out in the temperature range of 160-200°C and the shear rate range of 50.6-401.2 s-1, by using four different capillaries with varying L/D ratio. The die swell measurements were carried out by a laser scanning system attached to the machine. The rheological measurements show that the compos ites behave as pseudoplastic materials and follow the power law equation. The shear viscosity of the composites decreases with increasing fiber loading after a critical fiber concentration. The die swell also decreases with the increase in fiber loading.