Is rubber an insulator? What you need to know
Rubber is an elastic material that recovers after being stretched or bent, making it useful in many applications.
Rubber is also a non-metallic insulating material. Because non-metals lack free electrons that carry electrical energy, they cannot conduct current, making rubber an insulator.
Natural rubber is primarily composed of polyisoprene, which has strong sigma bonds and weak, non-overlapping pi bonds. These two bonds prevent low-energy electrons in the valence band from migrating to the higher-energy conduction band in the rubber, resisting the flow of current and making rubber a good insulator.
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Rubber’s Uses as an Insulator
In the power industry, it can be used as a protective material for electrical systems, such as high-voltage cable sheathing and coating, composite insulator sheathing materials, insulating gloves, insulating gaskets, and seals. Rubber is also commonly used in process building safety, including rubber insulated flooring and high-voltage equipment seals. It is also frequently used in railways: in high-speed rail and subway electrical systems, rubber insulation is used at some bracket joints to prevent leakage.
Rubber is also used in mining and transportation equipment.
The Thermal Insulation of Rubber
Rubber is a polymer material with very low thermal conductivity, meaning heat does not transfer easily through it.
Many rubbers (especially foamed rubbers) have tiny air pores within their internal structure, and air itself is an excellent thermal insulator.
The thermal conductivity of rubber is generally around 0.1-0.2 W/m·K, much lower than that of metal (tens to hundreds of W/m·K).
As an insulator, rubber can be used in a variety of scenarios and industries.
Silicone rubber insulator
Due to the characteristics of rubber materials, it is very suitable for production as an insulating material and is applicable to many industries. In the power industry, it is very suitable for use as an insulator. It performs very well when used on high-voltage power lines. If you have a demand for silicone rubber insulators, you can choose our products, please contact us
