OPTIMIZING THE PROPERTIES OF VULCANIZED COMPOUNDS FOR FOODSTUFF CONVEYOR BELTS IN INDUSTRIAL MICROWAVE PER-HEATING

Authors

  • Suphatchakorn Limhengha
  • Wipoo Sriseubsai

Keywords:

Foodstuff conveyor belt, Dielectric material, Vulcanized compounds, Industrial microwave

Abstract

This research finds a natural rubber-based material with good dielectric properties and low
cost for a foodstuff conveyor belt (FCB) that can be heated with microwaves. For this purpose, epoxidized
natural rubber-50 (ENR50) and standard Thai rubber 5L (STR5L) were mixed with a filler mixture of silica
and magnesium carbonate. The FCB compound with filler (FCBcF) yielding the best vulcanization time, and
the best mechanical, dielectric and dynamic properties, was selected for further study. The optimal FCBcF,
ENR50:SiO2:MgCO3 (100:40:40) with microwave pre-heating at 2.45 GHz and 340 W for one minute before
vulcanization, was well cross-linked and strongly converted the microwaves to heat. FCBcF also showed
satisfactory mechanical properties with reduced cost of raw materials and reduced the curing time by 50%
per round. The results demonstrate that pre-heating of FCBcF prior to vulcanization reduces the time and cost
of fabricating FCBs, providing long-term economic and environmental benefits.

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Published

2018-06-20

How to Cite

Suphatchakorn Limhengha, & Wipoo Sriseubsai. (2018). OPTIMIZING THE PROPERTIES OF VULCANIZED COMPOUNDS FOR FOODSTUFF CONVEYOR BELTS IN INDUSTRIAL MICROWAVE PER-HEATING . GEOMATE Journal, 15(50), 189–196. Retrieved from https://geomatejournal.com/geomate/article/view/991