Elastomers 1 are materials that have a high retractability, which means their compression set is very limited. There are two main groups of elastomers: rubber materials (NBR, FPM, Silicone, etc.) and thermoplastic elastomers.
Rubber materials are polymers, which are formed by chemically cross-linked macromolecules with various vulcanizing additives. Due to their chemical bonds, they do not melt but begin to decompose at high temperatures. The cross-linkage also results in that rubber materials don`t dissolve, but, depending on the fluid, swell or shrink.
Thermoplastic Elastomers represent the characteristic properties of elastomers over a wide range of temperatures, but with the processing behaviors of thermoplastics. They can be melted at high temperatures and can be processed with traditional thermoplastic processing techniques (injection molding, casting). Thermoplastic elastomers are double and they generally swell less in compounds. Rubber materials and thermoplastic elastomers are used in the sealing technology mainly as rod and piston seals, wipers, and static seals (O-rings, etc.).