Model compound vulcanization: A useful tool for rubber chemistry studies

Nowadays, rubber is a rather common material in our everyday lives. As is well-known these materials require processing in order to be useful for their applications. VULCANIZATION is the key process in the worldwide commercial manufacturing industry of such rubber formulations. Due to the complexity of the vulcanization process and the difficulty in handling of the samples, much of the earlier work has given rise to many conflicting theories. In the present paper the evolution of the analytical methods used for the study of natural rubber vulcanization using sulfur as a curing agent is presented. This evolution has led to the development of an analytical methodology based on the modeling approach (Model Compound Vulcanization, MCV). The vulcanization process is studied using squalene as a model compound. This method is being applied with success to the characterization of the main reaction paths followed by several types of accelerators.