You define the physical requirements – we are happy to help you select the right material!
Heat-resistant, acid-resistant, alkali-resistant, oil-resistant, flammable, buoyant, biocompatible or approved according to the End-of-Life Car Ordinance, Electrical Equipment Act, FDA, BfR, KTW, DVGW-W270, WRAS, ACS, ... - there are materials that meet each of these requirements. We are happy to support you and also offer various alternatives for you
to find a cost-effective and sustainable solution!
RubberMade from natural and synthetic rubbers
The term rubber includes all vulcanizates of natural and synthetic rubbers. Elastomers with a wide variety of properties are created from these rubbers through vulcanization (crosslinking). The special feature of elastomers is their elasticity, which means that a body made from an elastomer can be deformed by tension or pressure, but returns to its original shape without load.
Unlike plastics, vulcanized elastomers cannot be “melted down” again and fed into the injection molding process.
In order to obtain certain properties, rubbers are usually used as mixtures. A base rubber is mixed with various additives such as vulcanization accelerators and retarders, dyes, fillers, antioxidants or antiozonants, lubricants, etc. on a roller or kneader.
Typical properties
Most important areas of application
- Medical technology
- Automotive industry
- Mechanical engineering
- Sanitary and household technology
To make it easier for rubber parts to slide on smooth surfaces, molded rubber parts can be chlorinated. This hardens the surface, the actual part remains elastic and thus maintains its function.
Storage of rubber/elastomers
The storage regulations are summarized in DIN 7716. Here are the most important points:
- Properly stored vulcanized elastomers generally retain their properties for several years without any significant change.
- UV light, heat, ozone, oxygen, moisture, media (e.g. solvents, oils) or mechanical stress can lead to changes in properties or shape.
- Storage should be dry, cool, low-dust and moderately ventilated.
- The storage temperature should be between -10°C and +15°C.
- Storage should be carried out separately from media such as fuels, fats, oils, acids or solvents.
We would be happy to advise you if you have any specific questions.
Liquid Silicone RubberShort: LSR
Silicone rubber meets many of the requirements that designers in vehicle development as well as technicians and business people in purchasing have:
- high heat load and good low temperature resistance, flexibility from -50 to +250°C
- good rubber properties, ozone and UV stability, excellent aging behavior and very good weather resistance
- plasticizer-free
- outstanding electrical properties (both high insulation resistance and good electrical conductivity)
- advantageous fire behavior (after combustion, a residue of electrically insulating silicon dioxide remains)
- excellent physiological properties and therefore approved for use in the food sector (BfR/FDA) and particularly suitable in the medical sector
- approval for drinking water according to various standards such as KTW, DVGW W270, WRAS, ...
- oil-exuding material, slip-modified types, antibacterial types, surface modification by fluorination
- easy to color
Typical properties
| Typical properties | Test standard | Unit | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardness Shore A | DIN 53505 | 50 | |
| Appearance | translucent | ||
| Density | ISO 1183-1 A | g/cm³ | 1,125 |
| Tear resistance | DIN 53504 S 1 | N/mm² | 9,9 |
| Elongation at break | DIN 53504 S 1 | % | ≥ 480 |
| Further tear resistance | ASTM D 624 B | N/mm | ≥ 29 |
| Rebound elasticity | DIN 53512 | % | 62 |
| Compression set | DIN ISO 815-B (22 h / 175 °C) | % | 13 |
| Dielectric strength | DIN IEC 243-2 (1-mm-Plate) | kV/mm | 23 |
| Specific contact resistance | DIN IEC 93 | Ω cm | 5 x 1015 |
| Dielectric constant at 50 Hz | DIN VDE 0303 | εr | 2,8 |
| Dielectric loss factor (50 Hz) | DIN VDE 0303 | tan δ | 20 x 10-4 |
Notice: This table only gives a rough overview of the properties of a 50 Shore material. These may vary on the finished part.
Most important areas of application
- Automobile and vehicle construction
- Electrical engineering and electronics
- Human and food sectors
- Medical technology
- Sanitary and household technology
Vulcanizates made of silicone rubber are resistant to diluted acids and alkalis, although this resistance decreases with increasing concentration and temperature. Boiling water does not noticeably attack silicone rubber vulcanizates.
To make it easier for silicone parts to slide on smooth surfaces, silicone molded parts can be fluorinated. This hardens the surface, the actual part remains elastic and thus maintains its function.
We would be happy to advise you if you have any specific questions.
Thermoplastic elastomersShort: TPE
In terms of their properties, thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) are between thermoplastics (= plastic) and elastomers (= rubber). They can therefore be processed like plastic because the granules become plastic through heat and shear. When it cools down, it becomes as elastic again as it was in its original state. Melting and solidification are purely physical processes that can be repeated, in contrast to rubber, where chemical crosslinking makes it impossible to reverse the process.
There are different types of TPE, which can be roughly divided into two classes:
- Block copolymers
- Elastomer alloys/blends
Block copolymers
Macromolecules consisting of a hard segment (= thermoplastic phase) and a soft segment (= elastic phase). The block copolymers are divided into:
- Styrene types (TPE-S),
- Polyetherester (TPE-S),
- Polyurethanes (TPE-U) and
- Polyetheramides (TPE-A)
Elastomer alloys/blends
For this purpose, elastomer particles are embedded in a thermoplastic matrix. They are divided into:
- Thermoplastic polyolefins (TPE-V = partially cross-linked, TPE-O = uncross-linked)
- Acrylate-based HT blends
- Fluororubber-based blends
- Other thermoplastic vulcanizates
Most important areas of application
- Medical technology
- Automotive industry
- Telecommunications
- Consumer items
Advantages of TPE
- Processed like plastic (short cycle times, no rework)
- Raw material and processing cost-effective
- Simple realization of hard-soft composite parts (multi-component production)
- Recyclable
- Different colors possible
Disadvantages of TPE
- Lower temperature resistance than elastomers
- Lower media resistance than elastomers
- Poorer compression set than elastomers
We would be happy to advise you if you have any specific questions.
PlasticsThermoplastics
The thermoplastics (plastics) are solid over a wide temperature range, but become plastic and therefore deformable under the influence of temperature and shear. This process is repeatable and therefore recycling is fundamentally possible.
Plastics are classified according to their technical properties (mechanical, thermal, chemical) into standard plastics, technical plastics and high-performance plastics.
Known types are:
ABS, PA, PMMA, PC, PET, PP, PE, PS, PEEK, PBT, POM
Advantages of plastics
- Processing (short cycle times, no rework)
- Raw material and processing cost-effective
- Simple realization of hard-soft composite parts (multi-component production)
- Recyclable
- different colors possible