Structural analysis of sulfur in natural rubber using X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy.

X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES) has been applied to natural rubber in order to study the local environment of sulfur atoms in sulfur crosslinking structures introduced in the vulcanization process. Different types of chemical accelerators in conventional, semi-efficient and efficient vulcanization systems were investigated. The experimental results show the good sensitivity and reproducibility of XANES to characterize the local geometry and electronic environment of the sulfur K-shell under various conditions of vulcanization and non-vulcanization of natural rubber. Several applications of XANES in this study demonstrate an alternative way of identifying sulfur crosslinks in treated natural rubber based on differences in their spectra and oxidation states.