Similarity calculation method for infield and outfield low-temperature environmental tests of aircraft sealing rubber material

This study aims to accurately simulate the outfield low-temperature environment for the key components of aircraft in the parking state, using the infield low-temperature environmental test chamber, when there is a difference between the infield and outfield environments; and, moreover, reveal the similarity between the influences of the infield and outfield low-temperature environments on the elastic properties of the rubber sealing materials for aircraft. Two kinds of rubber materials were examined in the infield and outfield—the tensile springback test and the isobaric elongation test—and the measured data of low-temperature steady-state response (elastic property) were obtained under the typical temperature of -40 to 10 °C, finding that there is difference of elastic property between the infield and outfield environment. Three fitting methods were then used to describe the relationship between elasticity and temperature. In view of the difference of the elastic response of the typical rubber sealing materials to the low-temperature infield and outfield, a similarity calculation method of infield and outfield low-temperature tests was proposed, based on the translation and scaling transformation of the similarity curve. The outfield test data verify that the method proposed has high goodness of fit, and it is feasible and generalizable in the low-tempera- ture performance testing and research of rubber materials and components.