Physical and chemical stress relaxation of a fluoroelastomer

Stress relaxation measurements were made at various temperatures on V-747-7, a commercial high-temperature rubber formulation from the Parker Seal Company. The data were analyzed by separating the chemical and physical relaxation processes by a method described in an earlier publication. The chemical relaxation process was found to be Arrhenius with an activation energy of 35.7 kcal/mole. The results allow us to predict the relative useful lifetimes of this material up to approximately 320°C.