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General Q & A
Story of Rubber
Natural Rubber
Synthetic Rubber
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Story of Rubber
Story of Rubber
Q: What is rubber?
A: Rubber is a polymer with the property of elasticity which, when modified and strengthened by a curing process called vulcanization, is known as a ‘thermoset elastomer’. Each of the monomers which link to form the polymer is usually made of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and/or silicon.
Q: How many types of rubber are there?
A: There are two main types of rubber,
natural
and
synthetic
. The former is made from the latex derived ‘naturally’ from the rubber tree, while the latter is synthesized from chemicals sourced from petroleum refining.
Q: What are the main uses of rubber today?
A: Almost 60% of global consumption is by the world’s tyre manufacturing industry, with the remainder going into the ‘general rubber products’ sector; many thousands of different goods are manufactured by this sector, serving many industries, including transport, construction, health, mining etc.