Mediated Electrochemical Oxidation of Polybutadiene Rubber by Silver(II)

In this paper cured Polybutadiene (PBD) was oxidized by mediated electrochemical oxidation (MEO) in the presence of silver (II) as the mediate ion. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), elemental analysis (EDAX), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and contact angle measurement were employed to study surface morphology, surface elemental analysis, functional group characterization, and surface polarity of PBD, respectively. Results showed that surface morphology of the PBD had been changed and the surface had become brittle in macroscopic scale due to debonding. This debonding may be related to alkane groups which appeared in FTIR spectra after oxidation. However, surface polarity of the oxidized PBD was decreased based on contact angle measurements

Keywords:

Polybutadiene rubber , mediated electrochemical oxidation , Silver (II) , morphology , characterization