Thermoplastic Elastomer (TPE)

Thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) are a combination of polymers (usually a plastic and a rubber) which consist of both thermoplastic and elastomeric properties resulting in a product that is extremely easy to use in manufacturing a variety of products. TPEs require little or no compounding and no need to add reinforcing agents, stabilizers or cure systems. Hence, batch-to-batch variations in weighting and metering components are absent, leading to improved consistency in both raw materials and fabricated articles.

Common Uses:

• Medical Applications: catheters, medical tubing, dropper bulbs, extruded films, closures, surgical gowns, syringe tips,
• Consumer products: shoe soles, brush handles, diaper straps, baby bottle nipples, toothbrush grips, power tools, shaver grips, swim fins, bicycle grips, golf club grips, ski pole grips, straps, diving flash light grips, snowmobile grips, pool cleaner parts, rifle butts, baseball bat grips, and garden tool grips
• Industrial uses: adhesives, pipe gaskets, caster wheel treads, vibration dampening devices and plate gaskets

Physical Properties:

• Specific Gravity - .982 to 3.80 g/cm
• Tensile Strength - 290 to 2600 psi
• Flexural Strength - 1970 psi
• Impact Strength - 24 ft-lb/in

General Properties:

• Medium Viscosity
• General Purpose
• Good Flow
• Easy to color

Processing:

• Injection Molding
• Extrusion