Preparation and properties of powder styrene–butadiene rubber composites filled with carbon black and carbon nanotubes

Abstract Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and carbon black (CB) filled powder styrene–butadiene rubber (SBR) composites were prepared by spray drying of the suspension of CNTs and CB in SBR latex. The powders were sphere like and fine with uniform diameters of 10–15 μm. Experimental results showed that the introduction of CNTs into the matrix was beneficial to improve the security of the vulcanization of the rubber composites, and the dynamic and basic mechanical properties of the CNTs/SBR composites were better than those of CB/SBR and neat SBR composites. Observations on the microstructure of the composites indicated that CNTs were well dispersed in the matrix. Morphology of the fracture confirmed that the bonding between CNTs and rubber matrix was strong and load can be transferred to CNTs efficiently during the mechanical property tests. Moreover, the powder SBR composites containing well-dispersed CNTs could be perfect candidate as additives for other polymers.