Abstract
Rubber blends based on acrylonitrile butadiene rubber and poly(vinyl chloride) (NBR–PVC) were loaded with different contents of treated cement kiln dust (CKD) of up to 30 phr with a silane coupling agent and stearic acid. The prepared composites were subjected to electron beam irradiation doses of up to 150 kGy to induce radiation vulcanization under atmospheric conditions. Mechanical properties in terms of tensile strength (TS), tensile modulus, elongation at break and hardness were studied as a function of irradiation dose and degree of loading with filler. Furthermore the soluble fraction, swelling ratio and cross-link density physical properties were measured as a function of filler content and irradiation dose. In addition, the thermal behavior of the prepared composites was also investigated. The results obtained indicated that an improvement had been attained in the different properties of loaded (NBR–PVC) composites with the treated cement kiln dust.