Elastomerers

Elastomerers is a rarely used term that refers to practitioners and materials professionals who work with elastomers—polymers that exhibit rubber-like elasticity at room temperature. In common usage, these specialists are more often called elastomer scientists, rubber technologists, polymer engineers, or related roles. The term can also loosely describe the elastomer materials themselves in a manufacturing or research context.

Elastomers are characterized by high elasticity, viscoelastic behavior, and the ability to undergo large strains and recover their shape. They are typically crosslinked to improve mechanical properties through vulcanization or other curing methods. Major families include natural rubber and synthetic rubbers such as polyisoprene, styrene-butadiene rubber, nitrile, neoprene, silicone, fluorosilicone, EPDM, and fluorinated elastomers. Properties such as tensile strength, elongation at break, hardness (Shore A), abrasion resistance, and thermal stability are tailored for specific applications.

Manufacturing and processing involve polymerization of appropriate monomers, compounding with fillers, plasticizers, pigments, and accelerators, followed by shaping through extrusion, molding, or calendering, and finally crosslinking (vulcanization). Processing conditions and formulations determine elasticity, resilience, chemical resistance, and temperature performance. Quality control uses mechanical testing, dynamic mechanical analysis, and standard tests defined by ISO and ASTM guidelines.

Common applications include tires and tires components, seals and gaskets, hoses, belts, vibration mounts, medical devices, and consumer goods. Environmental considerations are increasingly important, with emphasis on recycling, devulcanization, and development of sustainable or bio-based elastomers.

See also: rubber technology, polymer science, elastomer classification.