Release Date : 2019/7/3 16:21:45 Click Volume : 3223
Silica gel is a highly active adsorbent gel material and a special rubber material used in the rubber and plastics industry. While tpe is a thermoplastic elastomer material (here, SEBS, SBS substrate modified materials are collectively referred to as tpe), the author analyzes the differences between the two from several angles, and teaches you how to distinguish between silica gel and tpe materials.
Material properties (compared with silicone and tpe, the former and the latter)
1 Weather resistance: The former has no double bonds in the molecule, especially anti-UV and anti-ozone properties, and has strong thermal stability and weather resistance. Therefore, the service life of the manufactured products can reach several decades; the latter is not as temperature-resistant as the former.
2 Chemical solvent resistance: The main component of silica gel is silica, which is chemically stable and chemically resistant to TPE.
3 Elasticity: Both have good elasticity.
4 Resilience: Although both have similar elasticity, the former has more resilience and rebound, and the permanent deformation of silica gel is low; the latter will be permanently deformed under certain external force.
5 processing method: the former is usually vulcanized with a hydraulic press, 15 minutes for a mold; the latter does not require vulcanization, can be molded separately with a common injection molding machine, a mold takes 1.5 minutes.
6 Cost: 1) From the perspective of environmental protection, the former cannot be recycled due to the need for vulcanization; the latter waste, nozzle material, scrap, waste, and old products can be recycled. 2) In terms of material cost, the former is generally more than 30,000 yuan per ton; the latter is 12.5 million tons of common materials, and the price of special grade materials will reach the price of silica gel even higher (but usually the price of silica gel is high).
How to distinguish between silica gel and tpe materials, where is the difference in performance?
Differentiation
1 Stretch: Here is a comparison of silica gel and transparent tpe. When the two are stretched and lengthened, the former stretches into white, while the latter remains transparent.
2 Combustion: Comparison with silica gel and solid tpe material. When the two burn, the former will produce white smoke, the root of the burning flame is white, no obvious odor is released, and white powder will be formed after burning; the latter will produce light black smoke, and the root of the burning flame may be yellow or blue, releasing the fragrance.
3 feel: from the material point of view, the silicone feel itself is not as good as tpe, as for the touch of tpe, you need to add rubber feel oil or rubber paint in the formula, can achieve the effect of tpe powdering, and less oil.
The above is the difference and differentiation of silica gel and tpe materials. It can be seen that both have their own advantages, and there are also steps for their respective grades. At present, high-end products in the industry do give priority to silica gel, such as high-end platinum craft silicone dolls, and tpe can't make dolls for the time being.
