Improvements to the erosion resistance of nanofilled silicone rubber composites by electrospinning

In this study, two-part room temperature vulcanizing silicone rubber (SiR) nanocomposite samples containing 7 nm sized fumed silica and 1.5 μm sized silica, were prepared by conventional mechanical mixing and by electrospinning, and their erosion resistance compared by the ASTM D2303 inclined plane (IPT) test. An improved dispersion of nanofiller in SiR was achieved by electrospinning thereby permitting the preparation of highly filled nano and micro sized composites. The results of eroded mass in the laser ablation tests, and tracking voltage and tracking time in the inclined plane test clearly shows improvements of the electrospun samples over conventional mixed samples. Further, observations of the uniform tracking patterns and hardness measurement after the IPT were indicators of improved filler dispersion in the electrospun samples.