Effect of some additives on tracking and tracking erosion of EPDM

A discussion is presented of the effects of some additives, such as Al(OH)/sub 3/, Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/, Fe/sub 2/O/sub 3/, ZnO, TiO/sub 2/, etc. on the tracking and tracking erosion of the ethylene-propylene terpolymer (EPDM). The test results show that the proof tracking index of EPDM improves with the increase in Al(OH)/sub 3/ content in EPDM and reaches 6.0 kV when a certain Al(OH)/sub 3/ level is attained. At lower test voltage (2.0 kV) the proof tracking erosion is reduced. Some metal oxide additives have a positive and others a negative effect on the proof tracking characteristics of EPDM. It is advantageous, in most cases, to add some metal oxides to the EPDM to improve the qualities of the proof tracking and proof tracking erosion of the EPDM.<>