We have been using the silicone term since long and it has become the backbone of many manufacturing and machine industries. If we talk about olden times, the use of rubber was very common as it was a natural product. Gradually men acquired a knowledge about its uses and the ways to extract it from a rubber tree. In early times we had only a natural resource but then we invented a way in which we could have artificial materials and then the ray of hope arises and we could produce synthetic materials.
Let us come to the point of silicone rubber. Originally a silicone rubber is made from silica and that is available from sand. It is made up of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen and silicon. It is an elastomer, made up with the combination of different synthetic materials. It has characteristic of both viscosity and elasticity.
The process of extracting silicone from silica is very complex. It must pass through hydrocarbon.
The present silicone, which is used in the industries is made, when extracted silicone is mixed with other chemicals. It does not get limited to its original forms. It has again, various types and used as per the different requirements. In this article, we are going to learn about the method of making silicone rubber and its various types.
How is silicone rubber made?
Silicone rubber is a combination of organic and inorganic group of materials. Silicone has high temperature resistance because of silicone oxygen bond. It can be flexible because of the hydrogen functioning. Synthetic polymer plays a main bond the formation of silicone rubber.
It is different from the natural rubber which is known as Latex substance. Silicone rubber is the formation made up of different kinds of synthetic materials. Silicone must have a characteristic like stiff gluey substance and it can be gained with the help of fillers. Further process goes in this way that elevated temperature is set to crosslink this substance. Peroxides and polyaddition plays a great role for the same. As mentioned above, silicone is high temperature resistant and so it can resist 200 C to -60 C.
The synthetic materials give a quality of unbreakable products. Apart from this, it has many different advantages like weather resistance, rust resistance, chemical resistance. A natural rubber is not as durable as a synthetic rubber. It happens because of difference between structure of both. There is a difference between their atomic structure. It is strong in the case of synthetic rubber.
Types of silicone rubber.
As we have seen the structure of silicone rubber and its formation process, let us now try to understand the different types of silicone rubber. Every type is different from each other. It is formed to fulfil the different purposes. It is again, very important that meticulous detail about silicone rubber should be known to the users.
Following are the different types of silicone rubber
The silicone rubber can be divided according to factors. One of them is based on the natural organic substances used in the formation like i, e. Methyl group, Methyl and phenyl group, Methyl and Vinyl group, Methyl, Phenyl, Vinyl group and Fluoro, Vinyl and Methyl group.
The organic part of silicone formation gives resistance to temperature and chemical attacks like fuel, oil and solvent.
Molecular structure is very important for every substance whether it is organic or inorganic.
The above-mentioned types of silicone were given as per the use of organic substances. The following given types are based on molecular structure, viscosity, and processing methods.
Silicone solid rubbers:
It contains high molecular weight and possess a long chain of molecules which makes it to be available in a hard solid form. The advantage of silicone solid rubber is that they have a higher degree of silicone chain. They are heat-curable too.
As the name is self-explanatory, the molecules of this kind of silicone rubber are lower in viscosity and the weight is also low. It maintains mechanical properties over a wide range of properties. It has got a good optical clarity as it gives a transparent quality. It reduces the cycle time and minimize the material waste.
Take Away
In this article, we have gained a knowledge about the method of manufacturing silicone. It is a complex method which involves the synthetic material and the combination of other chemicals. It is basically the formation from silica, that is sand. It has mainly two types. One is silicone solid rubber and the other is liquid silicone rubber. The types of silicone are based on weight of molecules and the process it takes to get formed.
We hope that this article must have given the depth about the silicone rubber its formation process and the kinds. Our readers’ reviews and suggestions are vital for us. It helps us to serve you in a better way.
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