Know about TPE Tubing Vs Silicone Tubing Which is Better?
Now a days we see various range of products and there are number of product in most of the industries uses silicone rubber tubing and TPE Tubing, when it comes to find the right tubing for your application required some research and in this blog we will understand which is better for your application requirement.
It’s not that easy to find the suitable rubber parts, like gasket or tubing, because different application required different type of performance in different temperature range. The material plays a vital role in the overall performance of the application. So, choose wisely when it comes to select the right tubing for your application.
In some application both rubbers will be suitable but its again totally depend of the requirement of application and also depend on what kind of usage of it. It can make or break potential fit within you application. Both of the material is having their own characteristics, and that is make them both useful. in this blog we will cover like to select the most suitable material for your custom parts.
Lets understand both material now.
Key difference between TPE Tubing & Silicone Tubing
As we know TPE means Thermoplastic Elastomer and it is composed of styrene, and polyurethanes. Due to its safety feature like flexibility and toxicity, thermoplastic tubing is the most suitable choice and perfect when it comes to compatible with medical grade devices and also even in the food industries it is being used widely.
Silicone is a rubber made of synthetic rubber, it is like mixing chemical, hydrocarbons that is passing though silicone. silicone rubber also has its own benefit such as it has the higher melting point that makes it suitable for manufacturing parts for HVAC System, even for automobiles, aircraft and rail.
In this blog we will understand both rubber type has its own benefits, you need to consider all the major factors before you make any decision on it. So here are the important factors you must consider for that.
- Cost effectiveness
- Is temperature is suitable for your application needs.
- Durability
- Sustainability as per the application
Understand the temperature requirement
For any application temperature requirement is very important so while selecting you must consider the two factor while selecting, Silicone has the advantage as it can sustain in higher to lower temperature range. But TPE is not having that extreme temperature capability.
Here is the clear difference you can understand that TPE range from -30 Degrees up to his of 250 degrees. If your application required more temperature capability then TPE is not suitable for your application because out of this range it will crack for sure. Silicone temperature ranges are much broader compare to TPE it has ranging between -60 to 150 degrees and high temperature use reaching up to 480 degrees which is really higher compare to TPE so this should be the deciding factor as per your application requirement.
Costing
As you see the benefit of using silicone rubber about the temperature the price of silicone material is also high because the manufacturing process becomes very complicated. At the same time TPE material don’t required such process and that makes it cost effective and that is why it is very popular among the applications where temperature range is not extra ordinary.
Sustainability
Material sustainability is also equally important, this quality is very important for number of application because its decide the application life. It helps to save your hard earn money. If we talk about TPE and Silicone then here TPE is more sustainable material compare to silicone and another good quality of TPE is that it can be recycled very simply. When it comes to sustainability for silicone then it’s a biggest drawback of it. You cannot recycle silicone easily. It will cost you more compare to TPE.
Additionally, our Santoprene TPE tubing has following key characteristics,
- Wide Operating temperature range of: -60° C to + 135° C (-81° F to +275° F)
- Excellent Ozone Resistance
- Excellent Chemical Resistant
- RoHS Compliant
- Santoprene Material is UL listed: file #QMFZ2.E80017, Plastics- Component; file #QMFZ8.E80017, Plastics Certified for Canada – Component.
- Highly Durable and Resistant to Fatigue
- Available as Food grade tubing, medical grade tubing, Chemical resistant tubing, Flame Retardant & UV resistant tubing
- Excellent Performance
- Aging Weather & Abrasion Resistance
- Available in various durometer hardness
- Soft flexible rubber tubing
- Suitable for various Peristaltic Pumps
- Available in many colors
When it comes to buy quality thermoplastic tubing SantopSeal is one stop solution, they are the leading manufacturer in USA for TPE tubing.