Melt-processable rubber: Chlorinated waste tire rubber-filled polyvinyl chloride

Chlorinated ground rubber tire (Cl-GRT) particles were used as filler in a plasticized polyvinylchloride (PVC) to develop a melt-processable rubber composition. Physical properties of the Cl-GRT-filled PVC compound showed improvement compared to the nonchlorinated counterpart. Interaction between Cl-GRT and PVC was examined on the basis of results of stress relaxation, dynamic mechanical thermal analysis, and solvent swelling studies. The Cl-GRT could be loaded upto 40 parts per hundred parts of PVC, and the composition still retains the elastomeric characteristics. The Cl-GRT-filled composite was found to be reprocessable like the unfilled PVC compound. (C) 2002 John Wiley Sons, Inc.