FKM seals, also known as fluorocarbon seals are industrial seals made of fluorocarbon elastomer material. Commonly, these seals are used in aviation and aerospace, food and pharmaceutical, semiconductor manufacturing applications, etc. Due to properties like high-temperature sustainability, chemical resistance, mechanical strength, etc these types of seals are highly preferred in the aforementioned industries. However, the fluorocarbon elastomers are responsible for the excellence of the FKM seals. Therefore, before utilizing these seals in industrial applications, one must be well-versed with the material, fluorocarbon rubber, and its properties. This post introduces fluorocarbon rubber, its material properties, and the advantages of FKM seals.
An Overview of FKM (Fluorocarbon Rubber)
FKM is an elastomer from the family of fluorocarbon elastomers. It was designated by ASTM International under the standard D1418. It was initially introduced by DuPont under the name of Viton®, however, now it is being manufactured by several manufacturers like Daikin Chemical, HaloPolymer, and many more. It is an equivalent material of FPM as both the materials feature the same base material that is a fluorocarbon rubber.
These highly fluorinated carbon-based synthetic rubber polymers were first introduced in the 1950s due to the demand for high temperature sustaining seals, O-rings, and gaskets for the aerospace industry.
FKM polymer is made from vinylidene monomers with a high concentration of fluorine and carbon-based elastomers. The crosslinking mechanism between the monomers, fluorine molecules, and carbon make this material highly suitable for applications exposed to chemicals and high temperature.
Owing to the excellent properties, FKM fluorocarbon elastomers are being utilized for manufacturing seals, O-rings, gaskets, etc for industries like automobile, aeronautical, petroleum, etc.
The following are the two grades of FKM fluorocarbon rubber.
Also, based on chemical composition, there are four fundamental types of FKM available, listed as follows.
There are several properties of this fluorocarbon rubber that makes it suitable for complex industrial applications. Let us discuss the same.
Properties of Fluorocarbon Elastomers
The following are the significant properties of FKM elastomers that make this material a great choice for applications exposed to high temperatures and chemicals.Learn About Few Specific Properties of FKM Seals
Owing to the above-mentioned properties of the material, the FKM seals are widely preferred in several industrial applications. The following are the benefits of using these seals instead of other types of seals like metal, or cartridge seals.
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