The effect of hydrophobically modified inulin on the properties of natural rubber latex concentrates
2007
Manroshan S. | Amir Hashim M. Y. | Booten K.
Natural rubber (NR) latex is a dispersion of rubber particles in an aqueous phase. By virtue of the naturally occurring surface active materials surrounding each particle, the rubber particles are therefore prevented from coalescing together. However, microbe activities in non-preserved latex may destroy the surface active properties of these natural materials. Hence, NR latex is typically preserved with ammonia to maintain its alkalinity of pH 10 and above. In this study, a biobased surfactant was added to the deammoniated natural rubber latex concentrate to enhance the stability of the latex. The hydrophobically modified polyfructose (Inutec® SP1), thought to be similar to some of the naturally occurring surfactants on the rubber was incorporated into the latex at different ratios and its effect on some of the important properties of the latex were investigated. The addition of 0.25 p.h.r. of the surfactant increased the mechanical stability time (MST) of the latex concentrates by 500 s. Up to six weeks of storage, not much change was observed in the viscosity although the volatile fatty acid number (VFA No.) of the concentrates increased slightly. However, as the pH reduced further below 10, the effectiveness of the surfactant decreased. The MST reduced whereas the VFA No. and viscosity of the latex concentrates increased.
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