Butyl rubber

Description

A common name for isobutylene-isoprene elastomer. Butyl rubber was originally the trademark [Standard Oil Co.] for a rubber developed in the 1930s. It was made by the polymerization of butylene and isoprene. Butyl rubbers are less permeable to air and gas than natural rubber. They are more resistant to sunlight and weathering but will dissolve in oils and hydrocarbon solvents. Butyl rubbers are used in tires, inner tubes, hoses, gaskets and diaphragms. They are also used for paper coating, waterproofing textiles and as adhesives.

Synonyms and Related Terms

isobutylene-isoprene elastomer; caucho butilado (Esp.); caoutchouc butyle (Fr.); borracha butílica (Port.)

Physical and Chemical Properties

Soluble in oils and hydrocarbon solvents.

Softening Point	Tg= -73C
Density	0.92 g/ml

Resources and Citations

• G.S.Brady, Materials Handbook, McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1971 Comment: p. 306

• Richard S. Lewis, Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 10th ed., 1993

• Dictionary of Building Preservation, Ward Bucher, ed., John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York City, 1996

• Thomas C. Jester (ed.), Twentieth-Century Building Materials, McGraw-Hill Companies, Washington DC, 1995

• The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998

• Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online, https://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/aat/, J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2000