Rubber Plantation Business
Page 4
Commentary
SIR 5L
SIR 5
SIR 10
SIR 20
SIR 50
Levels of impurity (maximum)
0.05%
0.05%
0.1%
0.2%
0.5%
Ash Content (maximum)
0.5%
0.5%
0.75%
1%
1.5%
Levels of Volatile substance (maximum)
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
PRI (minimum)
60
60
50
40
30
Plasticity – Po (minimum)
30
30
30
30
30
Colour limit – Lovibond scale (minimum)
6
-
-
-
-
Colour code
Green
Green
-
Red
Yellow
Table1.3 - Standard Indonesian Rubbers (SIR)
Commentary
SMR 5L
SMR 5
SMR 10
SMR 20
SMR 50
Levels of impurity with 325 mesh strainer hole 44 (maximum)
0.05%
0.05%
0.1%
0.2%
0.5%
Ash Content (maximum)
0.6%
0.6%
0.75%
1%
1.5%
Nitrogen Content
0.65%
0.65%
0.65%
0.65%
0.65%
Level of volatile substance
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
Plasticity retention (maximum)
60
60
50
40
30
Plasticity Wallace (minimum)
30
30
30
30
30
Colour limit
6%
-
-
-
-
Colour Code
Light green
Light green
Brown
Red
Yellow
Wrap colour
Clear
Clear
Clear
Clear
Clear
Plastic strip colour
Clear
Cloudy
Cloudy
Cloudy
Cloudy
Table 1.4 -Standard Malaysian Rubbers (SMR)
Crumb Rubber
Crumb rubber is a natural rubber that is specially made so its technical quality is guaranteed. Quality determination is also based on its technical properties. Colour or visual value became the basic quality grouping on the type of rubber such as “sheet” and “crepe”. However “Concentrated latex” also applicable for this one type.
Competition between natural rubber and synthetic rubber is caused by the rise of crumb rubber. Synthetic rubber’s requests tend to increase as the quality is guaranteed in every bale. Description of technical nature and features of each type of synthetic rubber quality are also included. These stuffs are also included in crumb rubber. This rubber is repacked in small bales, and in uniformed weight and size. It is also has laboratory test certificate and closed with sheets of polythene plastics.
Tyre Rubber
Tyre rubber is a different shape of natural rubber that is produced as undone materials so it can be used by consumer straight. It is good to make tyres or other stuff that uses natural rubber as raw material. It is made in Malaysia since 1972. The creator intended to improve competitiveness of natural rubber to synthetic rubber. Even though in Indonesia, this type of rubber is not common, but in Malaysia tyre rubber has already been sold according to Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR). Compare to conventional rubber, tyre rubber is the better fabric for tyre and other rubber product. Tyre rubber also has other advantages which is better in mixing with synthetic rubber.
Reclaimed Rubber
Reclaimed rubber is the rubber that is reprocessed from former rubber material goods, especially car and other moving tyres. Because of this, it is called reclaimed rubber.it is a product of scrap that has been vulcanized.
Alexander Parkes is the first person who attempts this type of rubber and until now reclaimed rubber is still needed, in fact in large amount. It is usually used as mixed material because it is easy to shape in mould and it is good adhesion. Reclaimed rubber enables faster mastication and mixing. Products produce are also firm and long lasting/ durable. Reclaimed rubber petrol resistance is way better than newly made natural rubber. Ebonite is also made from reclaimed rubber.
However it is less elastic and it has less friction resistance according to its nature as former used rubber. This is why rubber is not good enough to make tyre.
Synthetic Rubber and Its Quality Standard
Synthetic rubber mostly made by depending on petroleum. Synthetic rubber has grown in a large scale since World War II. In reality total natural rubber supply is not enough to fulfil the World needs of rubber; this is based on assumption during and after the war. Industries in developed countries are the pioneer of the development of types of synthetic rubber. There are a lot of synthetic rubbers known already. Usually every type has their own unique characteristics. There are types that are resistance to heat or high temperature, oil/fuel, the effect of air, even impermeable gas.
According to its benefits, there are 2 types of well-known synthetic rubber that is used commonly and synthetic rubber that is used for special needs.
Common Usage of Synthetic Rubber
Synthetic rubber is used for many need, a lot of functions of natural rubber can be replaced. Types of Synthetic Rubber for common/general usage are as stated below.
1)SBR (Styrene Butadiene Rubber)
SRB is the most produced and used synthetic rubber. It has good abrasion resistance and the heat generated is also low. However, the SRB that has not been added reinforcing material have lower strength compare to vulcanized natural rubber. Hot SBR produced by emulsion process at a temperature of 50°C. Cold SBR is made at a temperature of 5°C. From the 2 types mention earlier cold SBR is more commonly used. Some types of cold SBR are:
Series 1500 only for cold SBR
Series 1600 for cold SBR + Soot or Black carbon
Series 1700 for cold SBR + Oil
Series 1800 for cold SBR + Soot + Oil
2)BR (Butadiene Rubber) of Poly-butadiene Rubber
Compare to SBR, this rubber is weaker, concentration is lower and the processing is also hard. This type of rubber is rarely used alone. To make something BR is usually mixed with natural rubber or SBR.
3)IR ( Isoprene Rubber)
This type is similar to natural rubber because both of is polymer isoprene. It can be said that it has a lot of nature/characteristic that are similar to natural rubber, even though not all are included. It has its own advantages compare to natural rubber, which is more pure in material and viscosity is more stable.
Special Usage of Synthetic Rubber
This type of synthetic rubber is less frequently used compare to the previous synthetic rubber mentioned. This type is used for special usage because it has unique characteristics that the previous synthetic rubber does not have. Some if its characteristics and excellences are;
Oil resistance,
Oxidation resistance,
Heat/high temperature resistance and
Impermeable to gas.
IIR (Isobutene Isoprene Rubber)
IIR also known as butyl rubber have fewer bonds that made it resistant to the effect of oxidation and ozone. IIR is also well-known because
it is impermeable to gas. During vulcanization process IIR type will be slowly done where it requires catalyst and sulphur. Bas result of this will caused IIR to not mix with natural rubber and other synthetic rubber nicely if it is processed to create something. Developed IIR are Bromobutyl rubber and Chlorobutyl rubber, these two precocious at its vulcanization process. These 2 types are easily mixed with other rubber. IIR that is vulcanized with phenolic resin made the material have heat resistance and decay resistance.
1)NBR (Nitrile Butadiene Rubber)
This type of rubber is needed my many. Its best characteristics are resistant to oil and rubber will not expand. This characteristic is caused by the rubber that is containing acrylonitrile. The greater the amount of acrylonitrile it has, the higher the resistant to oil, fat and petrol. However, the elasticity will decrease.
NBR’s weakness is that it is hard to be plasticised. A way to overcome this is by selecting the NBR that has the desired initial viscosity. NBR needs the addition of reinforcing material and esters tenderizer.
2)CR (Chloroprene Rubber)
CR is resistant to oil but not as good as NBR. CR is also resistant to oxidation and ozone in the air; it is even resistant to heat or burning fire. The making of CR is not through vulcanization with sulphur but magnesium oxide, zinc oxide, and certain catalyst. Petroleum softener is added to the CR for good processing.
3)EPR (Ethylene Propylene Rubber)
Ethylene Propylene Rubber usually called “EPDM” because not only it uses ethylene monomer and propylene in the process; it also uses 3rd monomer or “EPDM”. During its vulcanization process, sulphur can be added. Some fillers and plasticizer added do not have any effect on its endurance. EPR’s excellence is that it is resistant to sunlight, ozone, and other lights. However it has weak adhesion.
Apart from the types mentioned previously, there are more types of special synthetic rubber that are rarely used. These types rubber are such as Acrylate Rubber, Polysulfide Rubber, Polyurethane Rubber, Fluorine Rubber, Epichlorohydrin Rubber, and Silicon Rubber.
These types of rubber are used for certain goods and certain usage. The price of this type is considered expensive. For example Fluorine Rubber can reach 45 x SBR price.
Advantages of Rubber
Advantages of Natural Rubber
Natural Rubber used in a lot of material industries. Basically goods that are made using natural rubber are very useful in daily life and in industry business such as transportation or other moving machine.
Goods that can be made using natural rubber are vehicles tyres, rubber shoes, and belt for moving machines, rubber pipe, wire, insulator, and stuff to wrap iron. Rubber materials are mostly used to make equipment like bulkhead or shock absorbers; it can also be used as machine seat holder. Wrapped rubber is used on door, glass door, car windows and others to make it put strong, shake resistant and water-prove. It is also used in making bridge so that the bridge can resist the shake.
Rubber materials are strengthened using strings so that it is strong and elastic enough and it will not produce noisy sound. This can be used for electric fan’s rope. Connecting oil pipe, water pipe, air pipe and other types of oil seals, all uses raw rubber. Even though now there are people who use plastics.
Now a day big buildings are using more and more rubber. They use it for parts of room, goods inside the room, carpets that are made out of rubber with interesting colours and design, etc. Large mines that processes iron ore and coal uses long belt for transportation. This belt is made out of rubber. Factories also use various types of belt for power transmission belt, product transportation and other needs. Goods like house furniture, decorations and office chair, glue, water hose, and stationary like eraser, all uses rubber as material. Some spoils equipment like types of ball as well as game equipment also uses rubber.
Most parts of warfare equipment and vehicles also use rubber for example fighter aircraft, tank, armoured personnel carrier (APC), big trucks and jeep. Thus, indirectly rubber contributes a lot under security and safety of a country. This is why government plants a lot of natural rubber for strategic stock pile like the developed countries. Natural rubber can also be used for the prevention of scratches or damages to the skin and nails of the barn animals sue to hard cement, so now they use floor-mats that are made out of rubber. Floor-mats are widely used in large barns now a day.
Advantages of Synthetic Rubber
Synthetic rubber have some superiority that natural rubber don’t have, then in the process of making goods, mostly uses synthetic rubber as the raw material.
NBR that have high resistance to oil usually used in making rubber pipe for petroleum and oil, branding, seal, packing and other goods that used for vehicles or gas industries.
CR that is resistant to fire used in making rubber pipe, wire wrapper, seal packing and safety belts. Adhesive usually made using specific types.
Impermeable to gas characteristics of IIR used to make types of vehicles, wire wrapping, also the layer for the tank for fat and oil. EPR type can also be used as making electrical wire.
Rubber has a big impact on transportation, industry, health, communication, education, entertainment, and a lot more.
Other Usage of Rubber Tree
Other than tapping latex from the rubber tree, we can also sell its bark. Usually when the tree is old, it needs to be rejuvenated and replaced with new ones. The tree will be cut down and the bark can be then sold.
Rubber tree’s production period usually lessen after the age of 25. During this time rubber trees can be rejuvenated. This is because a lot of rubber trees reach this age, the amount of rubber bark are not little. Even in 1985/1986 rubber wood business shine once in Indonesia. The incessant of wood and tropical forest preservation campaign supports the smoothness of rubber wood business, because if rubber wood is used less forest trees are cut down. As a result Mabel industries decreased until rubber wood that used to be replacement become the main.
Cheap price of rubber wood compare to other woods makes it has higher marketing demands. However, the supply of rubber wood is not stable as it depends on the area of old rubber wood or area that has changes to new clans.
Side income from rubber plantation that is not really used and nearly wasted is rubber seedlings. In many plantations, rubber seedlings are left falling from the trees and maybe just become children’s toys. Whereas it is used, it will be quite profitable because of its total number.
Figure 1.22 - Rubber Seeds
With the widest rubber plantation area in the world which reaches 3 million hectares and if 1 hectares of plantation able to produce not less than 5,000 seedlings every year, there are a lot to process. So if that huge amount is not used except for being thrown free also it will dirty the plantation.
The chemical compositions of rubber seedlings are quite high. From the analysis found it has 27% protein content, 32.2% fat, 3.6% water, 2.4% ash, 450μg thiamine, 2.5μd nicotinic, 250μg carotenoids and tocopherol, and 300mg cyanide in every 100g of material. Apart from high protein content, rubber seedling amino acid that the body needed is inside. All needed essential amino acid pattern is also very good. To make sure that the rubber seedling can used, the seedling needs to be processed first so that it is concentrated. The concentrated is the product of fractional distillation of rubber seedling’s protein that actually has high content but now even higher. In its making process, protein fraction made more and higher content with reducing or eliminating fat or other non-protein substance that is soluble. Useful protein from the rubber seedlings that is increasing can be used for various necessities, mainly as supplement or complement for food product. The supplement here is increasing the protein content of a product. The complement here is for amino acid shortage for comestibles. Types of food that can be mixed with concentrated rubber seedlings are synthetic meat, snacks, bread, baby food, etc.
The presence of cyanide made the rubber seedlings dangerous to be eaten raw or not yet processed. Through submergence pr
ocess for 24 hours with water that is changed often and open boiling, cyanide can be removed and evaporate. More types of food can enriched their protein content by adding concentrated rubber seedlings so more people can gain benefits from the usual free wasted material in plantation area.
When rubber plant is still young, age below 3-4 years, plant field can be benefited for side farming business, which is planted with crops like soya bean, earth nuts, green beans, ginger, or even upland rice.
Planting soya bean in rubber plantation area is recommended because it gives good profit. This is how it is done; first remove the weeds that grow around the area using herbicide. Field needs to be cleaned and processed. Then soya bean can be planted. Steps for treatment like fertilization, weeding, piling and disease control also needed to be done. Soya bean plants that grow can support the growth of rubber plant because soya bean is a legume. In 3 months soya bean can be harvested. However, when rubber plants reaching the age of 3-4 years when it start being tapped and the stem is big, planting soya bean should be stopped.
Another usage of rubber plantation is by having a sheep breeding. This has been tried by Sungei Putih Breeding Research Center, North Sumatera. The causes of having a sheep breeding is researched under rubber trees. Sheep gazing in rubber plantation allows them to eat the grass that thrives in many areas. Result of the research for sheep grazing has beneficial effect. Sheep breeding in the plantation makes the sheep grows rapidly reproduce faster and more twins and child death rate decrease. Sheep grazing also does not destroy or affect the plantation negatively.
The effort of sheep grazing in rubber plantation, to the owner or farmer means increase animal protein production economically without having to open a new field. Weeding cost in rubber plantation can be reduced as a means of biological weeding. Reciprocal relationship, animal manure produced can be used as organic fertilizer and soil nutrient enhancer that helps with fertilization. If this is done on large plantation means an additional income for employees. When done by a rubber farmer, it is also an additional advantage that is not little. Sheep breeding business in a rubber plantation is very beneficial for the owner of the plantation because no new field required. Additional jobs such as breeders is not really wasting time, which means productivity can increase and farmers income can also increase.