Mechanical Properties of Silicone Rubber in a Closed Volume

Abstract : This report covers an experiment to measure the mechanical properties of four samples of RTV silicone rubber. The test was conducted under conditions of small strains and an elevated hydrostatic pressure component of stresses (0 - 4000 psi). The results gave a Young's modulus in the range of 13,000 to 21,000 and a Poisson's ratio range of 0.48 to 0.49. The young's modulus values were much higher than the usual tensile values; however, a calculation of bulk modulus gave values which were within the accepted range.