What is Styrene-Butadiene Rubber?
As one of the most versatile copolymer rubber compounds in the world today, styrene-butadiene rubber is used in a number of different applications around the world. Here are some facts about the development of styrene-butadiene rubber and some of the products that are created with this strong and reliable synthetic rubber. Styrene-butadiene rubber, or E-SBR as it is known in manufacturing circles, was first developed in the 1930’s. Known as Buna S, the compound was prepared by I.G. Farbenindustrie in Germany. The process for creating styrene-butadiene rubber was through an emulsion procedure that used polymerization as the means of producing a material that had a low reaction viscosity, yet had all the attributes of natural rubber. One of the other advantages was that the production of SBR was very cost-effective. The synthetic rubber was used to stretch dwindling natural rubber resources, especially in the area of the manufacture of tires, which at the time were still solid rubber. Ot
