Improving Dispersion and Mechanical Properties of Natural Rubber and Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer Composites With Ionic Liquid-Modified Helical Carbon Nanofiber

This study presents an innovative “ionic liquid (IL) modification-spray compounding” technique to enhance the dispersibility of helical carbon nanofiber (HCNF) and fabricate IL-modified HCNF/silica composite fillers. These fillers were used to reinforce natural rubber/ethylene-propylene-diene monomer (NR/EPDM) composites. Results show that the composite filler modified with 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([C 4 MIM]BF 4 ) achieved the most uniform dispersion in the rubber matrix. Compared with the pure silica sample, the composite material exhibited improvements in shore hardness, stress at 300% strain, tensile strength at break, tear strength, rebound resilience, and abrasion resistance by 6.46%, 24.43%, 12.02%, 6.94%, 12.01%, and 22.75%, respectively. IL played a crucial role in the surface modification of HCNF, enabling their excellent dispersion and full reinforcement efficiency within the matrix. This research provides a novel and industrially promising strategy to address the dispersion issues of HCNF and improve the comprehensive properties of composite materials, opening up new avenues for the development of related materials.