A new test method for elastomers and thermoplastic elastomers has been developed and now is standardized, according to ASTM 8363-20.
The purpose of the TSSR test is to rapidly characterize those materials with respect to thermo-mechanical properties, based on non-isothermal relaxation measurements, which are evaluated according to the well-known theory of rubber elasticity.
Apart from characteristic temperature values, corresponding to certain levels of stress decay, thermoelastic behavior and the relaxation spectrum is determined. Thermoelasticity of elastomers is closely related to crosslink density of the network and is deduced from the temperature coefficient of stress, whereas the relaxation spectrum reveals meaningful information about physical and chemical relaxation processes.
In this work, the theoretical background and the working principle of the TSSR method is briefly described. Furthermore, the versatility of the test method is demonstrated at several application examples of conventional and thermoplastic elastomers.