On this episode of Tale of the Tape, Matt Tempelis walks through closed cell elastomeric foams for oil and fuel exposure.
Transcript:
Hello and welcome to another episode of Tale of the Tape. I’m Matt Tempelis President of Engineered Materials and your Minister of Tape. Today, I'd like to talk about closed cell elastomeric foams that are great for fuel and oil exposure. In the case of one also can handle heat. Remember, think of closed cell foams as balloons packed within that cellular structure of the foam. They make great positive seals under compression because they do not allow for a lot of intrusion of air and water. The foams we're talking about today are vinyl nitrile foams or NBR/PVC foams and epichlorohydrin foams, also known as ECH foams. These are great foams for oil and fuel exposure as gaskets, seals, insulators, isolators and so much more. Vinyl Nitrile Foams, also known as NBR/PVC foams, bring great oil and fuel resistance to your application and second to none flame retardancy of the elastomeric foams. Oftentimes, they'll bring a UL94-5VA rating and some FAA 12 second burn ratings to the party. Good chemical resistance, excellent shock absorption recovery, and relatively affordable. On the downside, okay temperature range, service temperature around 160°F temperature intermittent at 200°F. And their ozone and outdoor UV weathering is just okay, not the best. Often these are used in HVAC applications in construction. Think of Armaflex™️as a brand name. Those are oftentimes NBR/PVCs. Here's an example of an Ensolite product, which is an IR42. This product brings an UL94-HF1 rating and an HBF rating to the party. It's a relatively stiff foam at 5 to 11 psi compression deflection, and that does vary based on the thickness. Great products overall. Epichlorohydrin or ECH closed cell elastomeric foams bring you the trifecta of oil, fuel, and heat resistance all in one product. If you're looking for a service temperature upwards of 300°F, this is the product when you're being exposed to oil and fuel at the same time. You have intermittent temperature resistance of upwards of 325°F. On the downside, it is an expensive product that is not highly available. It's very specialty, but when you need it for heat, oil, fuel, you're going to be happy you have it. Here's an example of the Monarch 4051. It's a very nice soft compression deflection range of 2 to 5 psi at 25%. It carries the FMVSS 302 at greater than 1/8 inch thickness and continuous temperature range you're talking 300°F. So if you are exposed to those tough applications, this is the product for you. We've touched on a few closed cell elastomeric foams that are great for oil and fuel exposure today. If you have more questions about today's episode, please feel free to reach out. Remember, we have these and more closed cell elastomeric foams in stock ready for use for your application. We'll see you next time on Tale of the Tape.
