Thermally and Electrically Conductive Rubber

[jared4jackie]

Just doing some brainstorming...If you were to make rubber conductive, how would you do it? Thanks.

 

[sealguy]

You add conductive fillers to the rubber. For example, silver, silver plated copper, silver plated aluminum, silver plated glass or graphite.

Hope this helps.

Dennis

 

[1399]

Hi,

There are new technologies that can make rubber conductive using carbon nanotubes. They are comercially available

Ex. magnetorestrictive materials.

regards,

1399

 

[pg11]

Incorp[orate a conductive channel black.

 

[rhodie]

Ah, but could it be used in open celled or blown rubber?

Maybe you could create a sheet of rubber that functions as thousands of small capacitors, with air as the dielectric?

(just kidding)

 

[lee1217]

1) conductive carbon black is one way but one has to add enough to make the polymer conductive. Too much carcon balck is hard to process and handle and alter the polymer procerty too much to be of use in some cases. Metal powders have other chemical problems.

2) Ther are conductive agents one can purchase and use as an additives.

3) If the polymer are specific, each polymer can be rendered conductive by specific agents---

 

[JimMetalsCeramics]

Conductive rubbers are commercially available. They are primarily silver powder dispersed in a rubber matrix. Alternatives to silver include nickel, carbon black and aluminum. Silver gives the highest conductivity.

You disperse the conductive powder into the pre-cured rubber (e. g., 3-roll mill), cast and cure. I'm not sure why, but the conductivity is never as high as for conductive epoxies, which are also made this way.