Radiation processing analysis of aged EPDM/vinyl-POSS hybrid systems

The hybrid blends consisting of ethylene–propylene–diene monomer (EPDM) and vinyl polyhedral silsesquioxane (vinyl-POSS) nanoparticles were studied. Increasing filler concentrations, namely 2, 4, 6 and 8 phr, were added to the polymer substrate. The thermal stability was tested by chemiluminescence, while infrared spectroscopy describes the degradation development. The accelerated oxidative degradation promoted by thermal γ-irradiation treatments revealed that the low concentrations of vinyl-POSS create favorable conditions for hindering the development of the oxidation aging of host polymer. The most stable hybrid of this series contains 6 phr of vinyl-POSS. The addition of vinyl-POSS in the waste EPDM formulations is a proper solution for its reclaiming. The structural aspects related to the contribution of vinyl-POSS to oxidation prevention are discussed.