A comparative study of the mechanical and thermal properties of EPDM rubber/cement kiln dust composite cured by ionizing radiation

In this work, cement kiln dust (CKD) will be studied as an unconventional filler for ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymer (EPDM) rubber as an alternative to silica, which is widely used as filler for many types of rubber. (EPDM)/CKD rubber composites were fabricated using ionizing radiation. EPDM rubber was blended with different portions of cement-kiln dust 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 phr (phr = parts per hundred rubber). The prepared composites were cured by exposing to different doses of gamma rays up to 150 kGy to enhance the crosslinking of the EPDM rubber. The thermo-mechanical properties of the EPDM/CKD and EPDM/Si composites were investigated as a function of irradiation dose. The results showed a significant improvement in elongation and tensile strength by incorporating cement dust into EPDM rubber up to 20 phr, which is not significantly different from composites incorporated with silica. Gamma irradiation significantly improved the properties of all formulations.