Abstract
This paper describes the hydrophobicity variation of an alumina-trihydrate filled silicone rubber during a water absorbing-drying process. Especially, the hydrophobicity recovery characteristics during the drying process am investigated. It is found that the hydrophobicity can not recover the initial property after long-term water immersion because alumina-trihydrates expose on the surface and low molecular weight contents migrate into water. The effect of thermal ageing on the variations of the water absorbance and the hydrophobicity is also investigated. It is found that water absorbance of the thermally aged is higher than that of the untreated. In addition, it is turned out that the hydrophobicity recovery characteristics of the thermally aged depend on the heat treatment temperature.
