An unusual rupture process is described. It consists of the sudden appearance of internal cracks in bonded rubber cylinders at a well-defined and comparatively small tensile load. The cracks occur in all the vulcanizates examined, and in particularly weak rubbers are found to cause failure. Their appearance may also lead to marked changes in the load-deflection relationship. A theoretical treatment is presented on the basis of a proposed criterion for crack formation. It is assumed that they form when the negative hydrostatic pressure component of the applied stress reaches a critical value. It is shown by means of the theory of large elastic deformations that a critical value of the negative pressure exists at which any cavity in the rubber will burst, and the calculated value is shown to be in satisfactory agreement with experiment. Moreover, the theory successfully predicts the observed dependence of the cracking stress on the Young's modulus of the rubber, its virtual independence of the rubber strength and extensibility, and the general form of the observed variation of cracking stress and crack disposition with the thickness of the testpiece.

Investigations of the dynamic cut growth behavior of vulcanized rubbers indicate that there is a minimum tearing energy at which mechanical rupture of chains occurs. The limiting value is characteristic of each vulcanizate, but is in the region of 0.05 kg./cm. The mechanical fatigue limit, below which the number of cycles to failure increases rapidly, is accurately predicted from this critical tearing energy. Characteristics of cut growth at low tearing energies, and effects of polymer, vulcanizing system, oxygen, and fillers on the critical tearing energy and fatigue limit are discussed.

Experimental measurements are described of the load-deflection relations for rubber blocks having a wide range of thicknesses and varied shapes of cross-section. An approximate theoretical treatment is presented for classically small compressions of circular discs and infinitely long rectangular bars. The measured stiffnesses for small compressions are shown to be in good agreement with the theoretical predictions for a vulcanízate containing no carbon black, and, when an empirically obtained modification is made for thixotropic effects, for vulcanizates containing various quantities of carbon black. The behaviour under moderately large compressions is also examined.

SynopsisThe relationship between the cut growth and fatigue failure of natural rubber vulcanizates under repeated loading is examined. The cut growth behavior has been investigated using several types of test piece, and the results are shown to be consistent when interpreted in terms of the tearing energy concept developed previously. The most comprehensive data have been obtained by measuring the growth of a small cut in the edge of a strip cycled in simple extension. It is found that the cut growth per cycle is approximately proportional to the square of the maximum tearing energy attained during the cycle. Using this relation, the fatigue life of a specimen containing a small cut is deduced from elasticity theory as a function of initial cut size and maximum strain.A similar strain dependence is found for the fatigue life of die-stamped dumbbell test pieces with no intentionally produced flaws; this is consistent with the mechanism of failure being cut growth from small flaws present in the specimens. Their effective size is estimated t o be about 2 X cm, which is compatible with the observed superficial imperfections of the cut edges.Experimental results give good agreement with theory.

synopsisInvestigations of the dynamic cut growth behavior of vulcanized rubbers indicate that there is a minimum tearing energy a t which mechanical rupture of chains occurs. The limiting value is characteristic of each vulcanizate, but is in the region of 0.05 kg./cm. The mechanical fatigue limit, below which the number of cycles to failure increases rapidly, is accurately predicted from this critical tearing energy. Characteristics of cut growth at low tearing energies, and effects of polymer, vulcanizing system, oxygen, and fillers on the critical tearing energy and fatigue limit are discussed.