Rubber is an organic compound whose main components are carbon and hydrogen. It is obtained from special woody plants, which are often called rubber plants. Such representatives of the flora grow in the tropics. Their organs (fruits, leaves, branches, trunk, roots) contain latex. This milky liquid is not the juice of plants, botanists still doubt the specifics of its significance for the life of the plant organism. It is from latex in the process of coagulation that a continuous elastic mass is obtained, which is natural natural rubber.
History of the discovery of natural rubber
The contribution of Christopher Columbus to the development of world civilization is not limited to the Great geographical discoveries. It was his ship that landed on the island of Hispaniola in 1493 and took the first rubber product to Spain. It was an elastic bouncing ball that the locals made from the juice of the hevea, a plant found onshores of the Amazon. Seeing how the Indians enthusiastically threw up an outlandish little thing, which, reaching the ground, also bounced off as if alive, as if making a jump, the Spaniards were seriously surprised. After trying to hold this bouncing ball, they came to the conclusion that it was quite heavy, and also noticed its stickiness and the characteristic smell of smoke.
The use of rubber by the Indians was not limited to this. Local tribes not only played this ball, but used it in various religious ceremonies. And the sap of the tree from which it was obtained was considered sacred and was called "cauchu", which means "tears of the tree" in translation.
Among the curiosities brought by Columbus to Spain was this unusual ball. Since that time, the history of the use of rubber began.
First application attempts
But the Europeans did not pay due attention to the curiosity of the Indians. And until the XVIII century, no one thought about how wide and diverse the areas of application of rubber. Only when members of the French expedition, who visited the tropical forests of South America, he was again brought to Europe, they paid attention to him. Even greater interest arose when the French scientist Ch. Condamine, speaking at the assembly of the Paris Academy of Sciences, demonstrated samples of this substance, showed ways of possible application and products from it.
The widespread use of natural rubber in Europe began around 1770, when a new accessory appeared in schools - gummilastic, which was used to erase pencil lines.
Next beganactive search for possible uses for rubber. It was at that time that the invention of suspenders and rubber threads dates back. And the Scottish inventor C. Mackintosh guessed to lay a thin layer of rubber between two layers of fabric, thus obtaining a waterproof fabric. This material was crazy popular, raincoats from it got their name from the name of the inventor. They were called Macs.
The collapse of the rubber industry
Initial attempts to establish the production of waterproof shoes were unsuccessful. Galoshes, although they became quite fashionable for a short period of time, did not differ in practicality. In the cold, they could crack, and in the heat they almost melted and exuded an unpleasant odor.
The enthusiasm of the inventors did not last long. In one of those years there was a very hot summer in many parts of Europe. Under the influence of high temperatures, the products of the rubber industry turned into a terrible-smelling mass. All enterprises in this industry then went bankrupt.
Discovery of Charles Goodyear
And no one would have thought about galoshes and mackintosses, if not for the perseverance of the American Charles Goodyear. He devoted many years to finding ways to make a good material out of rubber.
Goodyear did a lot of experiments, mixing rubber with almost everything. He added s alt, pepper, sand, and even soup to it. Having spent all his money and strength, the inventor was already losing hope. But his efforts were nevertheless crowned with success. By adding sulfur to the substance, he discoveredthat both strength, elasticity, and temperature stability have improved.
Thus, he managed to improve the rubber. The properties and application of the new compound have again become the subject of study by scientists and industrialists. The material obtained by Goodyear is what we now call rubber, and the process by which it is obtained is the vulcanization of rubber.
Rubber boom
After the sensational discovery, numerous offers to buy a patent for the invented material rained down on the lucky scientist. The use of rubber for the production of rubber has become enormous. To do this, almost all countries began to look for ways to grow rubber trees on their territory. In this regard, Brazil was the most fortunate, because it was this state that was the owner of the huge reserves of such plants. The Brazilian government made a lot of efforts to remain a monopoly in this area, categorically banning the export of seeds and young Hevea plants. The death pen alty was even introduced for this crime.
But the Englishman Wickham, who has espionage practice, managed to penetrate the shores of the Amazon, where he secretly obtained and sent 70,000 rubber tree seeds to Britain. And although local breeders did not immediately succeed in growing this tropical plant in a territory with a different climate, thanks to their efforts, after some time, cheaper and more affordable English rubber appeared on the market.
In the meantime, the use of natural rubber has become so widespread that the number of rubber products has exceeded 100,000.the number of new products: conveyor belts and electrical insulation, "rubber bands" for linen, rubber shoes, children's balloons, etc. But the main use of natural rubber was associated with the automotive industry, when first carriage tires were invented, and then car tires.
The use of rubber and rubber in our country has long been based on their production from foreign raw materials. Only when dandelions were discovered in Kazakhstan, the roots of which contain rubber, did the first rubber products from domestic material appear. But it was a very laborious process, since the extraction of rubber from dandelion roots took a very long time due to its low concentration (16-28%).
Obtaining synthetic rubber
Natural resources of natural rubber do not meet the high needs of the population in goods made from this material. Now the production of synthetic rubber is much larger.
S. V. Lebedev in 1910 for the first time received synthetic rubber. The material for production was butadiene, which was isolated from ethyl alcohol. Later, by carrying out a polymerization reaction using sodium metal, butadiene synthetic rubber was obtained.
Industrial production of synthetic rubber
In 1925, SV Lebedev set himself the task of finding an industrial method for the synthesis of rubber. Two years later, it was successfully solved. The first few kilograms of rubber were synthesized in the laboratory. It was Lebedev who took upstudying the properties of this rubber and developing recipes for obtaining the products necessary for the consumer from it.
And in subsequent years, the use of rubber was the most important task of the work of S. V. Lebedev. It was according to his method that the first batch of this material on an industrial scale was obtained at the world's first plant producing this material.
In the period from 1932 to 1990, the Soviet Union was the leader in terms of production in this industry. The use of synthetic rubber made it possible to expand the range of rubber goods, in particular: soft rubber products, shoe soles, various pipes and hoses, sealants and adhesives, latex-based paints and others.
Synthetic rubber properties and applications
Now the range of synthetic rubbers has grown significantly compared to the middle of the 20th century. Its various types can differ greatly in chemical composition and consumer properties. The classification of synthetic rubber is based on the difference in the monomers that are used in its production. So, there are isoprene, butadiene, chloroprene and other types. According to another classification, rubbers are divided into types depending on the characteristic group of atoms that make up their composition. For example, types of polysulfide, organosilicon rubbers, etc. are known.
The main method for producing synthetic rubbers is the polymerization of dienes and alkenes. The most common monomers in this case can be called butadiene, isoprene, ethylene, acrylonitrile, etc.
Some types of polysulfide, polyurethane rubbers are obtained during the polycondensation reaction.
Rubbers for general and special purposes
According to the applications, rubbers can be divided into general and special purpose materials. Representatives of the first group have a set of properties that make it possible to use them for the production of various goods, the elastic properties of which should appear at ordinary temperatures. But the use of synthetic rubber for special purposes implies the preservation of properties in extreme situations, for example, under the influence of frost and fire, ozone and oxygen, etc.
Isoprene rubber application
The composition of isoprene rubber is very similar to natural rubber. Consequently, the range of properties of these substances is largely the same.
Its disadvantages include poor resistance to high temperatures, ozone and direct sunlight. The low cohesive strength of rubber based on them is a property that makes isoprene rubber less popular. Its use is difficult due to increased stickiness, insufficient skeleton and fluidity. But in monolithic products that do not require joining a large number of parts, isoprene rubbers are widely used.
Rubber patches
The use of rubber in medicine also takes place. The most common product of the medical industry, obtained from the use of rubber, is a patch. It is a mixture of rubber, medicinal andrelated substances. Benefits of these patches:
- long stickiness;
- compatibility with many drugs;
- harmlessness;
- ease of use.
The production process is to dissolve 1 part of rubber in 12 parts of gasoline. And then other accompanying components are introduced into the solution: turpentine (increases stickiness), lanolin (protects from drying out), zinc oxide (reduces irritation), drugs (create a therapeutic effect).
Rubber Implants
Really vital rubber products are human organ implants. The use of rubber in their production began relatively recently and marked the beginning of a new era in the development of medicine.
Tracheal implants are materials made of polyactylates, polysiloxanes, polyamides. The artificial heart and its parts are made from polyurethanes and polyoxylanes. Polyethylene and polypropylene are the material for the production of implants of parts of the esophagus, and polyvinyl chloride is the main component of implants of other parts of the digestive system. Artificial blood vessels are made from polyethylene terephthalate, polytetrafluoroethylene and polypropylene. Polyacrylates, polyamides, polyurethanes help people with disabilities find new bones and joints.
Use of rubber in industrial products
The importance of rubber in the national economy is enormous. But the use of natural rubber in its pure form is a bigrarity. Most often it is used in the form of rubber. Products made from this material are found in everyday life at every step. This includes wire insulation, the production of shoes and clothing, and car tires, and much more.
In the shoe industry, as a rule, the following types of rubber are used: porous (sole), leather-like (lower part of the shoe), transparent (heels).
The use of natural rubber and its synthetic analogues has not become widespread by chance. They meet the majority of human needs, being one of the most versatile materials.
