A study investigated hydrogen permeability in sulfur-cured NBR composites filled with carbon black (CB) and silica, using volumetric analysis across pressures ranging from 1.2 to 92.6 MPa. Both pure NBR and MT CB- and silica-filled NBR exhibited a single sorption mechanism that followed Henry’s law, indicating hydrogen absorption into the polymer chains. In contrast, HAF CB-filled NBR displayed dual sorption behavior, adhering to both Henry’s law and the Langmuir model, which suggests additional hydrogen adsorption at the filler interface. Hydrogen diffusivity in NBR followed Knudsen diffusion at low pressures and bulk diffusion at high pressures. In HAF CB-filled NBR, permeability decreased exponentially with increasing density, while in MT CB- and silica-filled NBR, it declined linearly. The strong polymer-filler interactions in HAF CB significantly influenced permeability. Permeability trends closely correlated with hardness, tensile strength, and density, allowing for the establishment of quantitative relationships between these physical and mechanical properties. These findings indicate that analyzing these properties can predict hydrogen permeability, positioning NBR composites as promising sealing materials for high-pressure hydrogen storage in refueling stations and fuel cell vehicles.
The objective of the present study was to investigate the relationship between surface roughness and touch perception of surfaces with randomly spaced, irregular features. Two sets of specimens with top surfaces consisting of triangular peaks and valleys were modeled and 3D-Printed by varying the height of the peak, the depth of the valley, and the width between two intersections of the peak or valley with the center line. For one set of specimens, values of these variables were kept constant within a specimen but varied across specimens. For the other set of specimens, values of these variables were randomly selected in given ranges within a specimen while ranges were varied across specimens. The level of touch perception of each specimen was then measured using a questionnaire consisting of 16 adjectives related to touch perception and a 7-point Likert scale. Measured data were statistically analyzed and compared between different sets of specimens. Results indicated that it was inappropriate to directly apply findings of the previous studies for surfaces with regularly spaced, geometrically well-defined features to surfaces with randomly spaced, irregular features.