- Email: [email protected]
Fibre layer optimises gasket properties
seteoctprint.qxd
24/09/2002
09:54
Page 3
NEWS which resists all wet process chemicals, amine-based strippers, acids and bases, and displays good mechanical strength and compression set properties at continuous service temperatures up to 275°C. For more information, contact: DuPont Dow Elastomers NV, Battelsesteenweg 455d, B-2800 Mechelen, Belgium. Tel: +32 15 288706, Fax: +32 15 288750.
Fibre layer optimises gasket properties Freudenberg Simrit LP is launching the Merkel FA flat gasket range, which is highly resistant to chemicals and heat. These properties are obtained by using a nonwoven supporting material, made from fibres, and is impregnated with NBR latex. This creates a sealing material that remains strong regardless of the direction of pull, making it ideally suited to sealing flanges on pipes, units and fittings. In a special procedure, carefully proportioned aramid and glass fibres are processed to form a nonwoven fabric with a clearly defined structure. Unlike fibrereinforced flat gaskets, which are manufactured using the calendar process, in this case a carefully determined fibre layer assumes the supporting function. In this way, an optimized structure is created in the first stage of production. The nonwoven fabric is then impregnated with a special blend of dispersed fillers and NBR. The advantage of this patented impregnation process is the water solubility of latex, says the company. This means that solvents are not required for the production of the fibrous flat gaskets, which reduces environmental pollution caused by the production process, and simplifies plant structure. The flat gasket material is thermally solidified between rotating heated cylinders. Depending on requirements, up to ten layers of the material can be laminated on top of one another in a different part of the
Sealing Technology October 2002
process. The number of layers depends on the required thickness of the seal. Heat and pressure are used in a calendar to create a gas-tight bond out of the individual layers. This process allows for standard flat gasket material thicknesses between 0.3 and 2 mm to be created. Special thicknesses are also possible. The continual production process means that the flat gasket material can be made available as an exact cut-to-size piece or, more economically, as an uncut roll. In its uncut state, shapes can be quickly and easily stamped out or cut out using water jet or laser cutting. The material is resistant to many substances including solvents, watery solutions, alcohols and glycols. Concentrated acids and alkali solutions can be sealed to moderate temperatures, while diluted acids and alkali solutions at high temperatures do not pose a problem. For more information, contact: Freudenberg Simrit LP, Unit 7 Wycliffe Road Industrial Park, Leicester Road, Lutterworth, Leicestershire LE17 4HG, UK. Tel: +44 1455 204444, Fax: +44 1455 204455.
On-line ‘fluid molecule builder’ GE Silicones, part of US company General Electric, has released an on-line tool called ‘The Fluid Finder’. This tool (patent pending) enables chemists to describe their unique molecular request, and quickly and easily construct a chemical inquiry. It requires no previous knowledge of how to operate chemical drawing software, and it simply creates a visual representation of the molecular backbone from a pallet of options. Chemists can then submit their customized view to GE Silicones to perform the search. Some of the other benefits of the tool include the ability to select multiple, independent functional groups and add them to the custom backbone diagram; the use of an ‘assistant’, which acts as an
interactive host to assist with customer queries; the ability of users to connect with links throughout the GE Silicones website that contain technical literature related to their query; and access to various other electronic tools and materials selection wizards also located within the Technical Solutions Center. Users can enter ‘The Fluid Finder’ from www.GESilicones.com, or at www.FluidFinder. com. For more information, contact: General Electric Company, 3135 Easton Turnpike, Fairfield, CT 06431, USA. Tel: +1 203 373 2211, Fax: +1 203 373 3131.
Test results reveal Superfil’s superior properties Canadian company Hedman Resources Ltd has made available test results from an independent laboratory which show that its asbestos-free mineral filler Superfil produces superior mechanical, physical and thermal properties in widely used compounded plastics formulations. The Toronto-based company, which produces an asbestos-free line of industrial mineral products for the global automotive (brakes, gaskets), plastics, and building industries, says that the tests, conducted by Adell Plastics Corporation, a major US compounder and certified independent testing laboratory, used Superfil 325 Silane treated, in formulations using polypropylene homopolymer, polypropylene copolymer, nylon 6 and nylon 66. It tested Superfil both as a standalone ingredient and in conjunction with other fillers including, glass, talc, mica and wollastonite, to approximate current industry practices of producing these formulations. According to Dr Luie Vizurraga, president of Allied Resinous Product Inc, which handles the technical analysis of the plastics industry for Hedman in North America, Superfil was shown to improve the strength, thermal
In Brief 21st Century negotiates with Flowserve Arland Dunn, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of 21st Century Technologies Inc, has announced that his company is entering into negotiations with Flowserve Corporation of Irving, Texas, which has expressed interest in distributing Pro Mag and Sea Patch magnetic leak sealing systems on a worldwide basis. DuPont raises prices of engineering polymers The European headquarters of DuPont Engineering Polymers has announced that as of 16 September 2002 the prices of certain DuPont engineering polymer products will be raised in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The following products are affected: Crastin PBT polyester resin will rise by 0.08/kg; Rynite PET polyester resin will see a 0.12/kg increase; Delrin polyacetal resin, 0.20/kg; Minlon mineral reinforced resin, 0.20/kg; and Zytel 6 and 6.6 nylon resins will rise by 0.20/kg. The company says that these increases are in response to current market conditions and to ensure that it will be able to meet future demand. Catalogue features seals for semiconductor processing Parker Hannifin’s Seal Group has published ‘Engineered Sealing Solutions for Semiconductor Processing’, a new catalogue that features the company’s sealing components and systems for use in semiconductor fabrication environments. The publication, which describes Parker’s complete line of elastomeric, thermoplastic, metal and composite products for critical semiconductor applications, outlines the key features of high performance O-rings, end effectors, thrust plate integral seals, ‘KFType’ centring rings, retainer rings and ParFab extruded, spliced and fabricated profiles. It also contains detailed information about the thermal stability and broad chemical resistance of the company’s ultra-pure Parofluor Series of advanced perfluorinated elastomers and UltraCOMP engineered thermoplastics.
3
24/09/2002
09:54
Page 3
NEWS which resists all wet process chemicals, amine-based strippers, acids and bases, and displays good mechanical strength and compression set properties at continuous service temperatures up to 275°C. For more information, contact: DuPont Dow Elastomers NV, Battelsesteenweg 455d, B-2800 Mechelen, Belgium. Tel: +32 15 288706, Fax: +32 15 288750.
Fibre layer optimises gasket properties Freudenberg Simrit LP is launching the Merkel FA flat gasket range, which is highly resistant to chemicals and heat. These properties are obtained by using a nonwoven supporting material, made from fibres, and is impregnated with NBR latex. This creates a sealing material that remains strong regardless of the direction of pull, making it ideally suited to sealing flanges on pipes, units and fittings. In a special procedure, carefully proportioned aramid and glass fibres are processed to form a nonwoven fabric with a clearly defined structure. Unlike fibrereinforced flat gaskets, which are manufactured using the calendar process, in this case a carefully determined fibre layer assumes the supporting function. In this way, an optimized structure is created in the first stage of production. The nonwoven fabric is then impregnated with a special blend of dispersed fillers and NBR. The advantage of this patented impregnation process is the water solubility of latex, says the company. This means that solvents are not required for the production of the fibrous flat gaskets, which reduces environmental pollution caused by the production process, and simplifies plant structure. The flat gasket material is thermally solidified between rotating heated cylinders. Depending on requirements, up to ten layers of the material can be laminated on top of one another in a different part of the
Sealing Technology October 2002
process. The number of layers depends on the required thickness of the seal. Heat and pressure are used in a calendar to create a gas-tight bond out of the individual layers. This process allows for standard flat gasket material thicknesses between 0.3 and 2 mm to be created. Special thicknesses are also possible. The continual production process means that the flat gasket material can be made available as an exact cut-to-size piece or, more economically, as an uncut roll. In its uncut state, shapes can be quickly and easily stamped out or cut out using water jet or laser cutting. The material is resistant to many substances including solvents, watery solutions, alcohols and glycols. Concentrated acids and alkali solutions can be sealed to moderate temperatures, while diluted acids and alkali solutions at high temperatures do not pose a problem. For more information, contact: Freudenberg Simrit LP, Unit 7 Wycliffe Road Industrial Park, Leicester Road, Lutterworth, Leicestershire LE17 4HG, UK. Tel: +44 1455 204444, Fax: +44 1455 204455.
On-line ‘fluid molecule builder’ GE Silicones, part of US company General Electric, has released an on-line tool called ‘The Fluid Finder’. This tool (patent pending) enables chemists to describe their unique molecular request, and quickly and easily construct a chemical inquiry. It requires no previous knowledge of how to operate chemical drawing software, and it simply creates a visual representation of the molecular backbone from a pallet of options. Chemists can then submit their customized view to GE Silicones to perform the search. Some of the other benefits of the tool include the ability to select multiple, independent functional groups and add them to the custom backbone diagram; the use of an ‘assistant’, which acts as an
interactive host to assist with customer queries; the ability of users to connect with links throughout the GE Silicones website that contain technical literature related to their query; and access to various other electronic tools and materials selection wizards also located within the Technical Solutions Center. Users can enter ‘The Fluid Finder’ from www.GESilicones.com, or at www.FluidFinder. com. For more information, contact: General Electric Company, 3135 Easton Turnpike, Fairfield, CT 06431, USA. Tel: +1 203 373 2211, Fax: +1 203 373 3131.
Test results reveal Superfil’s superior properties Canadian company Hedman Resources Ltd has made available test results from an independent laboratory which show that its asbestos-free mineral filler Superfil produces superior mechanical, physical and thermal properties in widely used compounded plastics formulations. The Toronto-based company, which produces an asbestos-free line of industrial mineral products for the global automotive (brakes, gaskets), plastics, and building industries, says that the tests, conducted by Adell Plastics Corporation, a major US compounder and certified independent testing laboratory, used Superfil 325 Silane treated, in formulations using polypropylene homopolymer, polypropylene copolymer, nylon 6 and nylon 66. It tested Superfil both as a standalone ingredient and in conjunction with other fillers including, glass, talc, mica and wollastonite, to approximate current industry practices of producing these formulations. According to Dr Luie Vizurraga, president of Allied Resinous Product Inc, which handles the technical analysis of the plastics industry for Hedman in North America, Superfil was shown to improve the strength, thermal
In Brief 21st Century negotiates with Flowserve Arland Dunn, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of 21st Century Technologies Inc, has announced that his company is entering into negotiations with Flowserve Corporation of Irving, Texas, which has expressed interest in distributing Pro Mag and Sea Patch magnetic leak sealing systems on a worldwide basis. DuPont raises prices of engineering polymers The European headquarters of DuPont Engineering Polymers has announced that as of 16 September 2002 the prices of certain DuPont engineering polymer products will be raised in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The following products are affected: Crastin PBT polyester resin will rise by 0.08/kg; Rynite PET polyester resin will see a 0.12/kg increase; Delrin polyacetal resin, 0.20/kg; Minlon mineral reinforced resin, 0.20/kg; and Zytel 6 and 6.6 nylon resins will rise by 0.20/kg. The company says that these increases are in response to current market conditions and to ensure that it will be able to meet future demand. Catalogue features seals for semiconductor processing Parker Hannifin’s Seal Group has published ‘Engineered Sealing Solutions for Semiconductor Processing’, a new catalogue that features the company’s sealing components and systems for use in semiconductor fabrication environments. The publication, which describes Parker’s complete line of elastomeric, thermoplastic, metal and composite products for critical semiconductor applications, outlines the key features of high performance O-rings, end effectors, thrust plate integral seals, ‘KFType’ centring rings, retainer rings and ParFab extruded, spliced and fabricated profiles. It also contains detailed information about the thermal stability and broad chemical resistance of the company’s ultra-pure Parofluor Series of advanced perfluorinated elastomers and UltraCOMP engineered thermoplastics.
3