Thermodynamics of Rubber

Band
Marlon P. Jordan

Rubber band
Arubber band, also known as
anelastic band,laggy band,gum
band, orelastic, is usually ring shaped
and commonly used to hold multiple
objects together. The rubber band was
patented inEnglandon March 17, 1845
byStephen Perry.Mesoamericans(such
as Aztecs and Mayans) were using
natural rubber products by 1600 B.C.;
they mixed latex with other materials to
get desired properties. In 1839,
Charles Goodyeardeveloped
vulcanizationwhich is used to make
rubber today.[5]Most rubber bands are
manufactured out of natural rubber.
Rubber bands come in a variety of
sizes.

Thermodynamics

Temperature affects the elasticity of a rubber band in an unusual way. Heating causes
the rubber band to contract, and cooling causes expansion. [11] One can observe this:
stretching a rubber band will cause it to release heat (press it against your lips to
notice this), while releasing it after it has been stretched will make it absorb heat,
causing its surroundings to become cooler. This effect is due to the higher entropy of
the unstressed state, which is more entangled, and therefore has more states available.
In other words, the ability to convert thermal energy into work while the rubber
relaxes, is allowed by the higher entropy of the relaxed state.
The result is that a rubber band behaves somewhat like an ideal monatomic gas,
inasmuch as (to good approximation) elastic polymers do not store any potential
energy in stretched chemical bonds. No elastic work is done to "stretch" molecules,
when work is done upon these bulk polymers. Instead, all work done upon the rubber
is "released" (not stored) and appears immediately in the polymer as thermal energy.
Conversely, when the polymer does work on the surroundings (such as contracting to
lift an object) it converts thermal energy to work in the process, and cools in the same
manner as an ideal gas expanding while doing work.

Elastration
In animal husbandry, rubber
bands are used for docking
and the male castration of
livestock. The procedure
involves banding the body
part with a tight latex (rubber)
band to restrict blood flow. As
the blood flow diminishes, the
cells within the gonads die
and dehydrate. The part
eventually drops off.

What do rubber bands and springs have in

common?

Exert

a restoring force proportional

to the displacement from equilibrium

How are they different?

Rubber breaks cleanly
Spring-like nature not destroyed by overextension
Temperature changes with extension/relaxation

Why does rubber warm when stretched

and cool when relaxed?

Stretching a rubber band restricts the

random rotations
The energy that was involved in the random
rotations gets converted into random
vibrations and the band heats up

Thats all
Folks!