ABSTRACT
In industrial applications rubber is used extensively; and reinforcement with fillers, such as carbon black, further improves the mechanical, viscoelastic and thermal properties (Payne 1962, Osanaiye 1996). This improvement in the properties of the material is dependent on a number of factors that include particle size, shape, dispersion, aspect ratio and surface functionalization. It is for this reason that significant interest is currently engaged in the exploitation of nano-dimensioned fillers (Ramorino, Bignotti, Pandini & Riccò 2009, Bhattacharyya, Sinturel, Bahloul, Saboungi, Thomas & Salvetat 2008) which have large specific surface areas and excellent physical properties that give them the potential to provide significant improvements compared to existing solutions.
