Imbernon et al. reported a method for the rearrangement
of disulfide linkages within epoxidized natural rubber
(ENR).[18] They used a disulfide cross-linker that efficiently
linked the backbone to form a high-molecular-weight ENR.
The behavior of the product was similar to that of natural
rubber at temperatures up to 1008C, but interestingly the
material can be reprocessed at temperatures greater than
150 8C. This was demonstrated by the grinding of the ENR
into a powder and then reheating it to 1808C for 40 mins
(Figure 2). Several analytical techniques were used to determine the mechanical properties of the reprocessed ENR,
including dynamic mechanical analysis and gel-permeation
chromatography. These analyses demonstrated that a significant portion of the mechanical strength can be recovered
following the reprocessing of the material (Figure 2).