High-performance rubber material and preparation method thereof
Technical Field
The invention relates to the technical field of rubber sizing materials, in particular to a high-performance rubber sizing material and a preparation method thereof.
Background
In recent years, with the development of society and the improvement of living standard of people, the automobile industry is rapidly developed, and the requirements of consumers on automobiles are also developing towards comfort, safety and economy. Automobile tires, which are important components of automobiles, are usually mounted on metal wheel rims to support the automobile body, buffer external impacts, achieve contact with the road surface, and ensure the driving performance of the automobile. Most of the preparation materials of the automobile tires are rubber materials, and the comfort, safety and economy of the automobiles are directly influenced by the performance of the rubber materials. Therefore, the rubber compound for manufacturing the automobile tire must have higher bearing performance, traction performance and buffering performance at the same time. Furthermore, high abrasion resistance and flexibility resistance, as well as low rolling resistance and heat build-up are also required.
At present, a rubber tire is formed by using two or more than two kinds of rubber of natural rubber, styrene butadiene rubber and butadiene rubber as main materials through blending, adding auxiliary agents such as carbon black and sulfur, uniformly mixing the materials through an open mill and an internal mixer, and processing and vulcanizing the materials. Such rubber compounds are generally not ideal for blending because of the different crystallinity of the rubber. The compatibility between the inorganic auxiliary agent and the high polymer material is poor, and the external seepage phenomenon is easy to occur, thereby affecting the performance of the sizing material. The rubber material can be used only after being vulcanized and formed, the manufacturing process is complex, and the requirement on equipment is high. And the wear resistance, high and low temperature resistance, strength, aging resistance, flame retardant property and hardness of the material are all required to be further improved.
Chinese patent CN104059263A discloses a rubber for tires, which is prepared from the following raw materials in parts by weight: 20-28 parts of polymerized styrene butadiene rubber, 6-10 parts of vulcanizing agent, 1006-11 parts of carbon black N, 3-5 parts of zinc oxide, 15-18 parts of carbon fiber, 8-13 parts of tackifier, 7-12 parts of dibutyl phthalate, 3-6 parts of plasticizer and 2-5 parts of vulcanizing agent. The rubber has the advantages of wear resistance, low temperature resistance, small rolling resistance, good wet skid resistance and the like, but the grip performance, the flame retardance and the strength of the rubber need to be improved, and the rubber has low elasticity, poor flex resistance and tear resistance, poor processability and poor self-adhesiveness.
Therefore, a rubber compound which has excellent gripping performance, flame retardance, wear resistance and high and low temperature resistance and low price is developed, meets the market demand and has wide application value.
Disclosure of Invention
In order to overcome the defects in the prior art, the invention provides a high-performance rubber material and a preparation method thereof, wherein the preparation method has the advantages of simple and feasible process, easily available raw materials, low price, low requirements on equipment and reaction conditions, and suitability for large-scale production; compared with the rubber material in the prior art, the high-performance rubber material prepared by the preparation method has the advantages of more obvious wear resistance, higher strength, better elasticity, more excellent high and low temperature resistance, and better ultraviolet aging resistance and weather resistance. The waste tires are added as fillers, so that the effects of energy conservation and environmental protection are achieved, the automobile tire made of the rubber material can effectively reduce and absorb the vibration and impact force of the automobile during running, the automobile parts are prevented from being severely vibrated and damaged in early stage, the automobile tire is highly suitable for the high-speed performance of the automobile, the noise during running is reduced, and the requirements of consumers on the comfort, safety and economical direction of the automobile can be met.
In order to achieve the aim, the invention adopts the technical scheme that the high-performance rubber material is prepared from the following components in parts by weight: 100 parts of composite synthetic rubber, 20-30 parts of thermoplastic elastomer SBS20, 2-5 parts of alumina nano fiber, 3-7 parts of flaky nano silicon, 10-15 parts of waste tire rubber powder, 20-30 parts of clay and 2-3 parts of coupling agent.
Preferably, the particle size of the clay is 200-400 meshes; the coupling agent is selected from one or more of a silane coupling agent KH570, a silane coupling agent KH560 and a silane coupling agent KH 550.
Further, the alumina nano-fiber is prepared in advance, and the preparation method refers to the Chinese invention patent 201110400200.2. The flaky nano silicon is prepared in advance, and the preparation method is as follows: poplar Juanyu, Lushigang, Xiaoqinghua, Zhang Jun, the structure and luminescence property of flaky nano-silicon are characterized in rare metals 2009(2), 217-222.
Preferably, the preparation method of the composite synthetic rubber comprises the following steps:
1) and (2) copolymerization: dissolving acrylonitrile, butadiene, styrene and glycidyl methacrylate in a high-boiling-point solvent, then adding an initiator, stirring and reacting for 2-3 hours at 60-70 ℃ in a nitrogen atmosphere, then precipitating in water, washing for 4-7 times by using ethanol, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven to dry for 10-15 hours at 60-80 ℃ to prepare a polymer;
2) hydrogen-containing silicone oil addition polymer: adding methyl hydrogen-containing silicone oil into a flask provided with a constant-temperature feeding funnel and a condenser tube, replacing air in the flask with nitrogen, opening condensed water, adding a catalyst, the polymer prepared in the step 1) and dimethyl sulfoxide, stirring, heating to 80-85 ℃, preserving heat for 6-7 hours, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 4-7 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 60-80 ℃ for 10-15 hours to obtain a hydrogen-containing silicone oil modified polymer;
3) chlorosulfonation of the polymer: adding the polymer prepared in the step 2) into carbon tetrachloride to swell for 2-3 hours, adding chlorosulfonic acid into the carbon tetrachloride, stirring the mixture in an ice-water bath to react for 18-22 hours, washing the mixture for 5-8 times by using ethanol and 5-8 times by using water in sequence, washing the mixture for 6-8 times by using methanol, and then placing the mixture in a vacuum drying oven to dry for 10-12 hours at the temperature of 60-70 ℃ to obtain the composite synthetic rubber.
Preferably, the mass ratio of the acrylonitrile, the butadiene, the styrene, the glycidyl methacrylate, the high-boiling point solvent and the initiator in the step 1) is 1:1.5:1:0.5 (6-10) to (0.01-0.03).
Preferably, the high boiling point solvent is selected from one or more of dimethyl sulfoxide, N-dimethylformamide and N-methylpyrrolidone.
Preferably, the initiator is selected from one or two of azobisisobutyronitrile and azobisisoheptonitrile.
Preferably, the mass ratio of the methyl hydrogen-containing silicone oil, the catalyst, the polymer and the dimethyl sulfoxide in the step 2) is (3-5): (0.1-0.3): (10-20): (50-100).
Preferably, the catalyst is an isopropanol solution of chloroplatinic acid with the mass fraction of 1-2%.
Preferably, the mass ratio of the polymer, carbon tetrachloride and chlorosulfonic acid in the step 3) is (1-2): (10-15): (6-8).
Preferably, according to the preparation method of the high-performance rubber compound, the composite synthetic rubber, the thermoplastic elastomer SBS, the waste tire rubber powder and the coupling agent are put into an internal mixer according to the proportion and are mixed for 2-4 minutes, then the alumina nano-fiber and the clay are added and are continuously mixed for 3-5 minutes, finally the flaky nano-silicon is added and is mixed for 3-5 minutes again, and then the mixture is discharged to a cutting machine to be discharged, so that the rubber compound is obtained.
An automobile tire is prepared by adopting the high-performance rubber material.
Adopt the produced beneficial effect of above-mentioned technical scheme to lie in:
1) the preparation method of the high-performance rubber material provided by the invention has the advantages of simple and feasible process, easily available raw materials, low price, low requirements on equipment and reaction conditions, and suitability for large-scale production.
2) Compared with the rubber material in the prior art, the high-performance rubber material provided by the invention has the advantages of more obvious wear resistance, higher strength, better elasticity, more excellent high and low temperature resistance, better ultraviolet aging resistance and better weather resistance.
3) The high-performance rubber material provided by the invention is added with waste tires as fillers, so that the effects of energy conservation and environmental protection are achieved, the automobile tire made of the rubber material can effectively reduce and absorb the vibration and impact force of the automobile during running, prevent automobile parts from being severely vibrated and damaged early, highly adapt to the high-speed performance of the automobile and reduce the noise during running, and can meet the requirements of consumers on the comfort, safety and economical direction of the automobile.
4) The high-performance rubber material provided by the invention is added with the composite synthetic rubber, and is blended with the thermoplastic elastomer, the two structures are similar, the compatibility is good, and the comprehensive performance of the rubber material can be favorably improved, the composite synthetic rubber is characterized in that double bonds of a molecule main chain flexible chain segment are modified by hydrogen-containing silicone oil, the weather resistance of the rubber material is improved, the rubber material is provided with a vulcanization system through chlorosulfonation treatment, the post-vulcanization treatment operation can be omitted, and the rubber material can be physically crosslinked, so that the wear resistance, the low temperature resistance, the high temperature resistance, the gripping performance and the chemical stability of the rubber material are further improved. Chlorine is introduced through modification, and the chlorine and nitrogen in a molecular chain are cooperated to improve high temperature resistance and flame retardance.
5) The high-performance rubber material provided by the invention is added with the alumina nano-fiber. The mechanical properties such as strength, hardness and the like of the rubber material can be effectively improved; the added flaky silicon has a graphene-like structure, is favorable for synergistic effect with a silicone oil structure, and improves self-lubricating wear resistance.
Detailed Description
In order to make the technical solutions of the present invention better understood and make the above features, objects, and advantages of the present invention more comprehensible, the present invention is further described with reference to the following examples. The examples are intended to illustrate the invention only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.
The alumina nanofibers used in the following examples of the present invention were prepared in advance, and the preparation method was described in chinese patent 201110400200.2. The flaky nano silicon is prepared in advance, and the preparation method is as follows: poplar Juanyu, Lushigang, Xiaoqinghua, Zhang Jun, the structure and luminescence property of flaky nano-silicon are characterized in rare metals 2009(2), 217-222. Other materials are from Shanghai spring Xin import and export trade company Limited.
Example 1
A high-performance rubber material is prepared from the following components in parts by weight: 100 parts of composite synthetic rubber, 20 parts of thermoplastic elastomer SBS, 2 parts of alumina nano fiber, 3 parts of flaky nano silicon, 10 parts of waste tire rubber powder, 20 parts of clay and KH 5702 parts of silane coupling agent.
The particle size of the clay is 200 meshes.
The preparation method of the composite synthetic rubber comprises the following steps:
1) and (2) copolymerization: dissolving 10g of acrylonitrile, 15g of butadiene, 10g of styrene and 5g of glycidyl methacrylate in 60g of dimethyl sulfoxide, then adding 0.1g of azobisisobutyronitrile, stirring and reacting at 60 ℃ for 2 hours under the nitrogen atmosphere, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 4 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 60 ℃ for 10 hours to prepare a polymer;
2) hydrogen-containing silicone oil addition polymer: adding 3g of methyl hydrogen-containing silicone oil into a flask provided with a constant-temperature feeding funnel and a condenser tube, replacing air in the flask with nitrogen, opening condensed water, adding 0.1g of catalyst, 10g of polymer prepared in the step 1) and 50g of dimethyl sulfoxide, stirring, heating to 80 ℃, preserving heat for 6 hours, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 4 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 60 ℃ for 10 hours to obtain a hydrogen-containing silicone oil modified polymer; the catalyst is an isopropanol solution of chloroplatinic acid with the mass fraction of 1%.
3) Chlorosulfonation of the polymer: adding 10g of the polymer prepared in the step 2) into 100g of carbon tetrachloride to swell for 2 hours, adding 60g of chlorosulfonic acid into the mixture, stirring the mixture in an ice-water bath to react for 18 hours, washing the mixture for 5 times by using ethanol and 5 times by using water in sequence, washing the mixture for 6 times by using methanol, and then placing the mixture in a vacuum drying oven to dry the mixture for 10 hours at the temperature of 60 ℃ to obtain the composite synthetic rubber.
The preparation method of the high-performance rubber compound comprises the following steps: according to the proportion, the composite synthetic rubber, the thermoplastic elastomer SBS, the waste tire rubber powder and the silane coupling agent KH570 are put into an internal mixer for mixing for 2 minutes, then the alumina nano-fiber and the clay are added for continuously mixing for 3 minutes, finally the flaky nano-silicon is added for mixing again for 3 minutes, and then the mixture is discharged to a cutting machine for sheet discharging to obtain the rubber material.
An automobile tire is prepared by adopting the high-performance rubber material.
Example 2
A high-performance rubber material is prepared from the following components in parts by weight: 100 parts of composite synthetic rubber, 23 parts of thermoplastic elastomer SBS, 3 parts of alumina nano fiber, 4 parts of flaky nano silicon, 12 parts of waste tire rubber powder, 23 parts of clay and KH 5703 parts of silane coupling agent.
The particle size of the clay is 250 meshes.
The preparation method of the composite synthetic rubber comprises the following steps:
1) and (2) copolymerization: dissolving 10g of acrylonitrile, 15g of butadiene, 10g of styrene and 5g of glycidyl methacrylate in 70g of N, N-dimethylformamide, then adding 0.15g of azobisisoheptonitrile, stirring and reacting at 63 ℃ for 2.3 hours under the nitrogen atmosphere, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 5 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 65 ℃ for 12 hours to prepare a polymer;
2) hydrogen-containing silicone oil addition polymer: adding 3.5g of methyl hydrogen-containing silicone oil into a flask provided with a constant-temperature feeding funnel and a condenser tube, replacing air in the flask with nitrogen, opening condensed water, adding 0.15g of catalyst, 13g of the polymer prepared in the step 1) and 65g of dimethyl sulfoxide, stirring and heating to 82 ℃, preserving heat for 6.2 hours, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 5 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 65 ℃ for 11 hours to obtain a hydrogen-containing silicone oil modified polymer; the catalyst is an isopropanol solution of chloroplatinic acid with the mass fraction of 1.2%.
3) Chlorosulfonation of the polymer: adding 13g of the polymer prepared in the step 2) into 130g of carbon tetrachloride to swell for 2.5 hours, adding 65g of chlorosulfonic acid into the mixture, stirring the mixture in an ice-water bath to react for 19 hours, washing the mixture for 6 times by using ethanol and 6 times by using water in sequence, washing and filtering the mixture for 7 times by using methanol, and then placing the mixture in a vacuum drying oven to dry the mixture for 11 hours at the temperature of 65 ℃ to obtain the composite synthetic rubber.
The preparation method of the high-performance rubber compound comprises the following steps: according to the proportion, the composite synthetic rubber, the thermoplastic elastomer SBS, the waste tire rubber powder and the silane coupling agent KH570 are put into an internal mixer to be mixed for 2.5 minutes, then the alumina nano-fiber and the clay are added to be continuously mixed for 3.5 minutes, finally the flaky nano-silicon is added to be mixed again for 3.5 minutes, and then the mixture is discharged to a cutting machine to be discharged, so that the rubber compound is obtained.
An automobile tire is prepared by adopting the high-performance rubber material.
Example 3
A high-performance rubber material is prepared from the following components in parts by weight: 100 parts of composite synthetic rubber, 26 parts of thermoplastic elastomer SBS, 4 parts of alumina nano fiber, 5 parts of flaky nano silicon, 13 parts of waste tire rubber powder, 25 parts of clay and 5603 parts of silane coupling agent KH.
The particle size of the clay is 300 meshes.
The preparation method of the composite synthetic rubber comprises the following steps:
1) and (2) copolymerization: dissolving 10g of acrylonitrile, 15g of butadiene, 10g of styrene and 5g of glycidyl methacrylate in 70g of N-methylpyrrolidone, then adding 0.2g of azobisisoheptonitrile, stirring and reacting at 66 ℃ for 2.5 hours under the nitrogen atmosphere, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 6 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 70 ℃ for 12.5 hours to prepare a polymer;
2) hydrogen-containing silicone oil addition polymer: adding 4g of methyl hydrogen-containing silicone oil into a flask provided with a constant-temperature feeding funnel and a condenser tube, replacing air in the flask with nitrogen, opening condensed water, adding 0.22g of catalyst, 15g of polymer obtained through the step 1) and 80g of dimethyl sulfoxide, stirring and heating to 83 ℃, keeping the temperature for 6.5 hours, then precipitating in water, washing for 6 times with ethanol, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying for 13.5 hours at 70 ℃ to obtain a hydrogen-containing silicone oil modified polymer; the catalyst is an isopropanol solution of chloroplatinic acid with the mass fraction of 1.6%.
3) Chlorosulfonation of the polymer: adding 16g of the polymer prepared in the step 2) into 140g of carbon tetrachloride to swell for 2.6 hours, adding 70g of chlorosulfonic acid into the mixture, stirring the mixture in an ice-water bath to react for 20 hours, washing the mixture for 7 times by using ethanol and 6 times by using water in sequence, washing and filtering the mixture for 7 times by using methanol, and then placing the mixture in a vacuum drying oven to dry the mixture for 11 hours at 66 ℃ to obtain the composite synthetic rubber.
The preparation method of the high-performance rubber compound comprises the following steps: according to the proportion, the composite synthetic rubber, the thermoplastic elastomer SBS, the waste tire rubber powder and the silane coupling agent KH560 are put into an internal mixer for mixing for 3 minutes, then the alumina nano-fiber and the clay are added for continuously mixing for 4 minutes, finally the flaky nano-silicon is added for mixing again for 4 minutes, and then the mixture is discharged to a cutting machine for sheet discharging to obtain the rubber compound.
An automobile tire is prepared by adopting the high-performance rubber material.
Example 4
A high-performance rubber material is prepared from the following components in parts by weight: 100 parts of composite synthetic rubber, 28 parts of thermoplastic elastomer SBS, 4 parts of alumina nano fiber, 6 parts of flaky nano silicon, 14 parts of waste tire rubber powder, 28 parts of clay and 5502 parts of silane coupling agent KH.
The particle size of the clay is 350 meshes.
The preparation method of the composite synthetic rubber comprises the following steps:
1) and (2) copolymerization: dissolving 10g of acrylonitrile, 15g of butadiene, 10g of styrene and 5g of glycidyl methacrylate in 90g of a high-boiling-point solvent, then adding 0.25g of an initiator, stirring and reacting at 68 ℃ for 2.8 hours in a nitrogen atmosphere, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 6 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 78 ℃ for 14 hours to prepare a polymer; the high-boiling-point solvent is formed by mixing dimethyl sulfoxide, N-dimethylformamide and N-methylpyrrolidone according to the mass ratio of 1:2: 4; the initiator is prepared by mixing azodiisobutyronitrile and azodiisoheptonitrile according to the mass ratio of 3: 5.
2) Hydrogen-containing silicone oil addition polymer: adding 4.5g of methyl hydrogen-containing silicone oil into a flask provided with a constant-temperature feeding funnel and a condenser tube, replacing air in the flask with nitrogen, opening condensed water, adding 0.27g of catalyst, 18g of the polymer prepared in the step 1) and 90g of dimethyl sulfoxide, stirring and heating to 84 ℃, preserving heat for 6.8 hours, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 6 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 78 ℃ for 14.5 hours to obtain a hydrogen-containing silicone oil modified polymer; the catalyst is an isopropanol solution of chloroplatinic acid with the mass fraction of 1.8%;
3) chlorosulfonation of the polymer: adding 18g of the polymer prepared in the step 2) into 140g of carbon tetrachloride to swell for 2.8 hours, adding 75g of chlorosulfonic acid into the polymer, stirring the mixture in an ice-water bath to react for 21 hours, washing the mixture for 7 times by using ethanol and 7 times by using water in sequence, washing and filtering the mixture for 7 times by using methanol, and then placing the mixture in a vacuum drying oven to dry the mixture for 11.5 hours at 68 ℃ to obtain the composite synthetic rubber.
The preparation method of the high-performance rubber compound comprises the following steps: according to the proportion, the composite synthetic rubber, the thermoplastic elastomer SBS, the waste tire rubber powder and the silane coupling agent KH550 are put into an internal mixer to be mixed for 3.5 minutes, then the alumina nano-fiber and the clay are added to be continuously mixed for 4.5 minutes, finally the flaky nano-silicon is added to be mixed again for 4.5 minutes, and then the mixture is discharged to a cutting machine to be discharged, so that the rubber compound is obtained.
An automobile tire is prepared by adopting the high-performance rubber material.
Example 5
A high-performance rubber material is prepared from the following components in parts by weight: 100 parts of composite synthetic rubber, 30 parts of thermoplastic elastomer SBS, 5 parts of alumina nano fiber, 7 parts of flaky nano silicon, 15 parts of waste tire rubber powder, 30 parts of clay and KH 5703 parts of silane coupling agent.
The particle size of the clay is 400 meshes.
The preparation method of the composite synthetic rubber comprises the following steps:
1) and (2) copolymerization: dissolving 10g of acrylonitrile, 15g of butadiene, 10g of styrene and 5g of glycidyl methacrylate in 100g of N, N-dimethylformamide, then adding 0.3g of azobisisoheptonitrile, stirring and reacting at 70 ℃ for 3 hours under the nitrogen atmosphere, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 7 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying at 80 ℃ for 15 hours to prepare a polymer;
2) hydrogen-containing silicone oil addition polymer: adding 5g of methyl hydrogen-containing silicone oil into a flask provided with a constant-temperature feeding funnel and a condenser tube, replacing air in the flask with nitrogen, opening condensed water, adding 0.3g of catalyst, 20g of polymer prepared in the step 1) and 100g of dimethyl sulfoxide, stirring, heating to 85 ℃, preserving heat for 7 hours, then precipitating in water, washing with ethanol for 7 times, and then placing in a vacuum drying oven for drying for 15 hours at 80 ℃ to obtain a hydrogen-containing silicone oil modified polymer; the catalyst is an isopropanol solution of chloroplatinic acid with the mass fraction of 2%;
3) chlorosulfonation of the polymer: adding 20g of the polymer prepared in the step 2) into 150g of carbon tetrachloride to swell for 3 hours, adding 80g of chlorosulfonic acid into the mixture, stirring the mixture in an ice-water bath to react for 22 hours, washing the mixture for 8 times by using ethanol and 8 times by using water in sequence, washing the mixture for 8 times by using methanol, and then placing the mixture in a vacuum drying oven to be dried for 12 hours at 70 ℃ to obtain the composite synthetic rubber.
The preparation method of the high-performance rubber compound comprises the following steps: according to the proportion, the composite synthetic rubber, the thermoplastic elastomer SBS, the waste tire rubber powder and the silane coupling agent KH570 are put into an internal mixer for mixing for 4 minutes, then the alumina nano-fiber and the clay are added for continuously mixing for 5 minutes, finally the flaky nano-silicon is added for mixing again for 5 minutes, and then the mixture is discharged to a cutting machine for sheet discharging to obtain the rubber material.
An automobile tire is prepared by adopting the high-performance rubber material.
Comparative example 1
Commercially available halobutyl rubber, available from Lanxess corporation.
Comparative example 2
The example provides a suitable rubber compound, which is prepared from the following raw materials in parts by weight and by the substantially same preparation method as in example 1, except that: which does not contain compounded synthetic rubber.
Comparative example 3
The example provides a suitable rubber compound, which is prepared from the following raw materials in parts by weight and by the substantially same preparation method as in example 1, except that: which does not contain alumina nanofibers.
Comparative example 4
The example provides a suitable rubber compound, which is prepared from the following raw materials in parts by weight and by the substantially same preparation method as in example 1, except that: the nano-silicon sheet is not contained.
The rubber compounds of examples 1 to 5 and comparative examples 1 to 4 above were subjected to the performance test, the test methods and the test results are shown in Table 1.
TABLE 1 rubber stock Performance test results
As can be seen from table 1, the high-performance rubber compound disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention has excellent tensile strength, hardness, resilience, wear resistance and weather resistance, and the addition of the composite synthetic rubber, the alumina nanofibers and the flaky nano silicon all have a positive effect on the improvement of the above-mentioned properties.
The foregoing shows and describes the general principles and broad features of the present invention and advantages thereof. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, which are described in the specification and illustrated only to illustrate the principle of the present invention, but that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, which fall within the scope of the invention as claimed. The scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.