Mechanical Behavior of Filled Rubber Compounds: Hyper-Elastic Models Based on Strain Amplification

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Department of Rubber Processing and Engineering, Faculty of Processing, Iran Polymer and Petrochemical Institute, P.O. Box: 14975-112, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Hypothesis: The hyperelastic behavior of the rubber compounds filled with reinforcing fillers (carbon black) is dependent on the filler content. The previous theories for the prediction of the mechanical behavior of these materials are
based on phenomenological relationships. In this research, a new approach based on the amplified strain theory is presented and its reliability and applicability are examined for a rubber compound reinforced with different carbon black contents Methods: Six rubber compounds based on SBR reinforced with different carbon black contents (20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 phr) as well as the neat compound were prepared. The mechanical behavior of these compounds under uniaxial tension mode, volumetric changes, compression, and simple shear modes were experimentally determined. The
Yeoh material model was selected for the neat compound and material constants were calibrated using the uniaxial and volumetric changes data. Two strain amplification relationships were selected including the Bergstrom-Boyce and our newly proposed models. The parameters of the latter model were determined using an optimization algorithm in which a new UHYPER subroutine was developed and linked to Abaqus main code. To assess the proposed model and comparing it with the Bergstrom Boyce model the simulation results obtained from the finite element model of the uniaxial, compression, and simple shear tests were compared with their corresponding experimental data.
Findings: The results showed that hyperelastic behaviors of the filled rubber compounds, predicted by our developed strain amplified model, are more accurate than those obtained by the Bergstrom-Boyce equation. It is also found that the combination of the Yeoh hyperelastic model with our proposed relationship can precisely predict the mechanical behavior under different modes of loadings..

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