Overview
ISO 23794:2023 - Rubber, vulcanized or thermoplastic - Abrasion testing - Guidance provides practical guidance for determining the abrasion resistance of vulcanized and thermoplastic rubbers using both solid and loose abradants. This fourth edition (2023) helps users select appropriate abrasion test methods and test conditions for material evaluation, quality control, R&D and assessing suitability of rubber parts exposed to wear. It is guidance-focused and does not cover product-specific wear tests (for example, trailer tests for tyres).
Key topics and technical requirements
The standard addresses the full testing context rather than prescribing a single method. Key technical topics include:
- Terms & definitions: abrasion, abrasion resistance, abrasion resistance index, relative volume loss, abradant, abrasion pattern.
- Wear mechanisms: abrasive (cutting), fatigue, adhesive wear, roll formation, erosive/corrosive effects - and how mechanisms change with conditions.
- Types of abrasion tests and geometries: loose-abrasive (e.g., sand impingement), and solid-abrasive configurations such as:
- reciprocating plate vs. abradant
- rotating disc or wheel against test piece
- drum traversing tests and tumbling drum tests
- knife-type abradants against rotating specimens
- Abradant selection: abrasive wheels, abrasive papers/cloths, metal knives, smooth surfaces, loose particles - guidance on matching abradant properties (particle size, sharpness, wheel structure) to service conditions.
- Test conditions to control: temperature, degree and rate of slip, contact pressure, continuous vs. intermittent contact, lubricants and contamination.
- Apparatus, reference materials and test procedure: guidance on equipment choice, reproducibility, calibration and how to express results (e.g., volume loss, abrasion resistance index).
- Emphasis that test conditions should reproduce service conditions where possible - there is no universal abrasion test for all rubber applications.
Practical applications and who uses ISO 23794:2023
This guidance is relevant for:
- Materials scientists and R&D teams developing rubber compounds (vulcanized or thermoplastic).
- Testing laboratories and QA/QC engineers performing abrasion testing for product acceptance.
- OEMs and component manufacturers (tyres, conveyor belts, seals, hoses, linings) assessing material durability.
- Procurement and standards bodies selecting reproducible test methods to predict field performance.
Practical benefits include improved correlation between lab abrasion testing and in-service wear, better abradant and test-condition selection, and clearer interpretation of results for product design and specification.
Related standards
- The document references other methods such as ISO 4649 (rotating drum device method) in its explanatory notes. Users should combine ISO 23794 guidance with specific test-method standards when selecting and conducting tests.
Keywords: ISO 23794:2023, abrasion testing, rubber abrasion resistance, vulcanized rubber, thermoplastic rubber, abradant, abrasive wear, abrasion test methods, test conditions.
