Sanitary rubber composition or article

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The inventor has made various efforts over a long time and consequently, has found that a sanitary rubber article which can favorably be compared with rubber articles of the prior art using ordinary additives is obtained by mixing a synthetic rubber prepared by solution polymerization with a fine powder of polyethylene having a mean molecular weight of 1.
times.
10.
sup.
6 to 1.
times.
10.
sup.
9, bridging with a bridging agent and forming.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a rubber composition for a sanitary article, comprising a synthetic rubber, particularly prepared by solution polymerization, and a finely divided powder of polyethylene having a mean molecular weight of 1.
times.
10.
sup.
6 to 1.
times.
10.
sup.
9 (hereinafter referred to as HMWPE) and a sanitary rubber article such as rubber closure for an injection fluid, comprising a blend of a synthetic rubber and HMWPE, which has been bridged and shaped.
That is to say, in the present invention, sanitary rubber articles, for example, rubber closures for injectable products such as wads, plugs with or without a skirt or flange and caps, having excellent physical properties (tensile strength, elongation, etc.
) and sanitary properties (KMnO.
sub.
4 consumption, ultraviolet absorption spectrum, etc.
of the extraction solution) can be obtained by adding only HMWPE to a synthetic rubber prepared by solution polymerization, followed by bridging and shaping.
Generally, HMWPE is added in a proportion of 3 to 50 parts by weight to 100 parts by weight of a synthetic rubber.
However, because there are a number of kinds of sanitary rubber products and a number of requirements to be satisfied, addition of only HMWPE is sometimes insufficient.
In such cases, other additives such as silicon oxide, aluminum silicates, magnesium silicates, clays and titanium oxides can be added in a proportion of 1 to 30 parts by weight to 100 parts by weight of a synthetic rubber for the purpose of improving the abrasion resistance, flexibility resistance and compression set