Qin Xuan, Wang Jiadong, Han Bingyong, Wang Bo, Mao Lixin, Zhang Liqun
State Key Laboratory of Organic-Inorganic Composites, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, China.
State Key Lab Chemical Resource Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, China.
Front Chem. 2018 Jul 20;6:240. doi: 10.3389/fchem.2018.00240. eCollection 2018.
Recently, sustainable development has become a significant concern globally, and the energy crisis is one of the top priorities. From the perspective of the industrial application of polymeric materials, rubber tires are critically important in our daily lives. However, the energy consumption of tires can reach 6% of the world's total energy consumption per annum. Meanwhile, it is calculated that around 5% of carbon dioxide comes from the emission of tire rolling due to energy consumption. To overcome these severe energy and environmental challenges, designing and developing a high-performance fuel-saving tire is of paramount significance. Herein, a next-generation, eco-friendly super elastomer material based on macromolecular assembly technology has been fabricated. Hydroxyl-terminated solution-polymerized styrene-butadiene rubber (HTSSBR) with high vinyl contents prepared by anionic polymerization is used as flexible soft segments to obtain excellent wet skid resistance. Furthermore, highly symmetrical 1,5-naphthalene diisocyanate (NDI), different proportions of chain extender, and the cross-linking agent with moderate molecular length are selected as rigid hard segments to achieve simultaneous high heat resistance. Through this approach, a homogeneous network supported by uniformly distributed hard segment nanoparticles is formed because soft segments with equal length are chemically end-linked by the hard segments. This super elastomer material exhibits excellent wear resistance and low rolling resistance. More importantly, the wear resistance, rolling resistance, and wet-skid resistance are reduced by 85.4, 42.3, and 20.8%, respectively, compared to the elastomeric material conventionally used for tire. By taking advantage of this excellent comprehensive service performance, the long-standing challenge of the "magic triangle" plaguing the rubber tire industry for almost 100 years is resolved. It is anticipated that this newly designed and fabricated elastomeric material tailored for tires will become the next generation product, which could exhibit high potential for significantly cutting the fuel consumption and reducing the emission of carbon dioxide.
近年来，可持续发展已成为全球关注的重要问题，能源危机是首要关注的问题之一。从高分子材料的工业应用角度来看，橡胶轮胎在我们的日常生活中至关重要。然而，轮胎的能源消耗可达全球每年总能源消耗的6%。与此同时，据计算，约5%的二氧化碳来自轮胎滚动时因能源消耗产生的排放。为克服这些严峻的能源和环境挑战，设计并开发高性能节能轮胎具有至关重要的意义。在此，基于大分子组装技术制备了一种下一代环保型超级弹性体材料。通过阴离子聚合制备的高乙烯基含量的端羟基溶液聚合丁苯橡胶（HTSSBR）用作柔性软段，以获得优异的湿地抓地性能。此外，选择高度对称的1,5-萘二异氰酸酯（NDI）、不同比例的扩链剂以及具有适度分子长度的交联剂作为刚性硬段，以实现同时具有高耐热性。通过这种方法，由于等长的软段被硬段化学端接，形成了由均匀分布的硬段纳米颗粒支撑的均匀网络。这种超级弹性体材料具有优异的耐磨性和低滚动阻力。更重要的是，与传统用于轮胎的弹性体材料相比，其耐磨性、滚动阻力和湿地抓地性能分别降低了85.4%、42.3%和20.8%。利用这种优异的综合使用性能，解决了困扰橡胶轮胎行业近百年的“魔三角”这一长期挑战。预计这种新设计制造的轮胎专用弹性体材料将成为下一代产品，在大幅降低燃油消耗和减少二氧化碳排放方面具有巨大潜力。
