Hierarchically self-organized dissipative structures of filler particles in poly(styrene--butadiene) rubbers

Yamaguchi, Daisuke; Yuasa, Takeshi*; Sone, Takuo*; Tominaga, Tetsuo*; Noda, Yohei*; Koizumi, Satoshi*; Hashimoto, Takeji*

We elucidated the spatial distribution of filler particles in cross-linked poly(styrene--butadiene) rubbers (SBR) developed under a typical fillers/rubbers compounding process as one of dissipative structures formed under a stress field imposed on the given system. The dispersion state of the fillers in SBR was clarified on the basis of hierarchical structures consisting of five structure levels. More specifically, it has the following characteristics depending on the specific interactions: Small, compact clusters build up compact mass-fractal structures, while large, loose clusters build up open mass-fractal structures.