Efficiencies of Dipolymer Rubber Blends (EPDM\FKM) using Common Weight Data Envelopment Analysis

Polymer blends are generally categorized into two main classes: miscible blends that exist in a single homogeneous phase exhibiting synergistic properties and immiscible blends that have 2 or more different phases. There is also a third category of blends called technologically compatible blend, which exist in two or more different phases on micro scale, yet displays combination of properties. Ethylene-propylene-diene rubber (EPDM) and Hexa fluoropropylene-vinylidinefluoride dipolymer, Fluoroelastomer (FKM) blends with and without compatibilizer (MA-g-EPDM) were prepared by two-roll mill mixing. The aim of the work is to find out the best blend ratio and the amount of compatibilizer loading on thermal and mechanical properties by applying a novel mathematical programming technique called Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). Using the different concentration of the ingredients used as inputs and the extent to which certain properties satisfied by the blends as outputs, a DEA model is developed. The blends which will be referred to as Decision Making Units (DMUs) were classified in terms of their efficiency. It is observed that the efficiency of all the compatibilized blends is higher than that of uncompatibilized blends. The maximum efficiency is obtained for 2.5 phr compatiblized blend.聚合物共混物通常可划分为两大类别：一类为均相共混物（miscible blends），以单一均相形态存在并表现出协同性能；另一类为非均相共混物（immiscible blends），包含两种及以上不同相态。此外还存在第三类共混物，即工艺相容共混物（technologically compatible blend），其在微观尺度下呈现两种及以上不同相态，却可兼具多种性能。本研究通过双辊混炼法制备了三元乙丙橡胶（Ethylene-propylene-diene rubber, EPDM）与六氟丙烯-偏氟乙烯二元共聚物基氟橡胶（Fluoroelastomer, FKM）的共混物，其中部分共混物添加了相容剂（马来酸酐接枝三元乙丙橡胶，MA-g-EPDM），另一部分未添加。本研究的目标为，通过一种名为数据包络分析（Data Envelopment Analysis, DEA）的新型数学规划方法，探究最优共混配比以及相容剂添加量对共混物热学与力学性能的影响。研究以不同配料浓度作为输入变量，以共混物各项性能的达标程度作为输出变量，构建了DEA模型。本研究将所有共混物视为决策单元（Decision Making Units, DMUs），并根据其效率值进行分类。研究结果表明，所有添加相容剂的共混物其效率值均高于未添加相容剂的共混物；当相容剂添加量为2.5 phr（每百份橡胶质量份）时，共混物的效率值达到最高。