Study of the Influence of Microwaves in the Mechanism of Sulfenamide Accelerated Vulcanization of Natural Rubber Using Squalene as a Model Compound

The natural rubber vulcanization mechanism has been studied using microwaves as a heating source. The influence of such heating system on the mechanism reaction has been elucidated. In order to simplify the study of this process, squalene has been used as a Model Compound Vulcanization (MCV) for natural rubber and N-cyclohexyl-2-benzothiazolesulfenamide (CBS) as an accelerator. The accelerator fading, the crosslinking degree, the reversion process and the effect of the double bond have been studied and the results have been compared with previous results of our group using MCV with conventional heating. As well as the expected reaction rate increase, a noticeable change in the crosslink degree has been observed. Furthermore, some differences have been detected in the amount of the intermediate compounds formed during the reaction and in the sulfur transfer to the squalene chain. Strong differences have been also observed regarding the role of the activator in the vulcanization when microwaves are used.